Blue Jays Defeat Mariners, Forcing a Game 7 in the ALCS
In this story:
The Toronto Blue Jays got some timely hitting and took advantage of three Seattle errors to defeat the Mariners, 6-2. The Jays were paced by a prolific pitching performance from Trey Yesavage, who threw nearly six-innings of shutout baseball.
“This was the most electric, energized crowd I’ve ever played in front of before,” Yesavage said after the game. “The team rallied behind the fans. They were a huge motivation for us.”
The 22-year-old rookie was not intimidated at all, even though he was pitching in a 'win-or-go-home' scenario. He helped Toronto stave off elimination by keeping Seattle's explosive offense in check. The Jays hurler went 5 2/3 innings, allowing just one run, while striking out seven and issuing three waks.
“I was getting my stuff in the box early, getting ahead of batters and letting my defense work. Getting three double plays in back-to-back-to-back innings to get out of two bases-loaded jams, that is huge. I knew my defense had my back.”
The Jays got home runs from Addison Barger and Vladimir Guerrero Jr, in a night that saw Toronto rack up 11 hits while the M's committed a season-high three errors.
Can the Mariners Rebound on the Road?
Despite the demoralizing defeat, the Seattle Mariners say that they have to brush it off and just play out the deciding Game 7. While it would have been nice to take the American League crown early, it's almost against this team's nature to do anything the easy way. That resilience is what has brought them this far, and the typical response from players and coaches has been not to dwell on a loss, but rather face it as just anther challenge.
“I love pitching under pressure,” said Seattle’s starter George Kirby, who will take the mound in Game 7 against Toronto’s Shane Bieber.
“We’ll be ready to go in Game 7,” Seattle manager Dan Wilson said. “Baseball is a game of adjustments. They will be able to do that tomorrow night.”
