Inside The Blue Jays

This Little-Known Blue Jays Player Just Sparked an ALCS Breakthrough

Maybe his name wasn't viral before, but it is now.
Maddy Dickens|
Sep 6, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; Toronto Blue Jays second baseman Andrés Giménez (0) reacts after striking out against the New York Yankees during the second inning at Yankee Stadium.
Sep 6, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; Toronto Blue Jays second baseman Andrés Giménez (0) reacts after striking out against the New York Yankees during the second inning at Yankee Stadium. | John Jones-Imagn Images

In this story:

Toronto Blue Jays

The Toronto Blue Jays and the Seattle Mariners fought their way into the American League Championship Series. Toronto's offense looked like it would be hard to stop, but in the first two games, it really only looked like the Mariners had shown up.

The Blue Jays dropped a pair of games on their home field and had to travel across the country to steal wins of their own to keep their season alive.

The ALCS is a best-of-seven series, so technically, game three wasn't an elimination game, but it was definitely a must-win for the Jays. The Mariners held the Blue Jays to a measly four runs combined in the first two games, but that struggling batting lineup didn't show up in Seattle.

Toronto needed a big play to kick-start its offense. They had been punched in the gut in the first two games and needed to see a few hits, a double, a single, anything. Knowing that the Jays put up 21 runs in games three and four, it is clear that everybody showed up, but it wasn't one of the All-Stars who got their scoring started in either game.

A Hero in Both Victories

Andrés Giménez getting hit by a pitch in a blue uniform
Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

The Blue Jays' shortstop Andrés Giménez hits No.9 in the batting order, but he proved that doesn't mean anything when an American League Pennant is on the line. After hitting only seven home runs during the regular season, he now has two in the last two games.

The first game in Seattle started off in the same daunting fashion as the first two. The Mariners had a two-run homer in the first and the Blue Jays were scoreless through two innings. But, after an Ernie Clement double, Giménez hit a a 400 foot bomb to get the Jays on the board and tie the score, his first playoff homer of his career.

Now in Game 4 the Blue Jays again were not facing elimination, but they needed to win this game. Who better to get the Jays on the board in back-to-back games than their No.9 batter, in the same inning, to the same spot (right field)?

Looking at these two wins alone he now has a stat sheet of:

  • 5-for-8 hitting
  • A pair of two-run homers
  • 6 RBI
  • 3 Runs
  • 11 Total bases
  • 1 Strikeout

With a pair of victories, the Jays have guaranteed that this series will finish up on their home field. Game five will be played today at T-Mobile Park, the last game in Seattle before heading back to Toronto.

More Blue Jays On SI

Published
Maddy Dickens
MADDY DICKENS

Maddy Dickens resides in Loveland, Colorado. She grew up with two older brothers, where their lives revolved around sports. She earned a master's degree in business management from Tarleton State University while simultaneously playing basketball and competing in rodeo at the collegiate level. She successfully parlayed a reserve national championship into a professional rodeo career and now stays involved in upper-level athletics by writing for On SI on several different MLB teams' pages, along with some NCAA sites.

Home/News