TORONTO – One baseball game this Monday night at 8:10 p.m. will determine whether the Toronto Blue Jays advance to the World Series.
• Also read: Blue Jays push for final game
• Also read: On the “train” to Toronto
• HAVE: Vladimir Guerrero Jr. thrills Toronto crowd with home run
This is undoubtedly the most important game played by baseball in Canada since the 1993 World Series, which the Jays won 32 years ago.
Combining regular season results with playoff results, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and his teammates now have a total of 100 wins. Winning this seventh game of the American League Championship Series, which will be televised on TVA Sports, is all that matters to them now.
“If you had told me at the beginning of training camp that we had to win a game to get to the World Series, I would have accepted it without hesitation,” commented Blue Jays manager John Schneider at the dawn of a highly anticipated showdown against the Seattle Mariners.
This is a huge event not only for the Blue Jays, for the city of Toronto, but for all of Canada.
Photo by Benoit Rioux
“We won’t lie, it’s really great to be where we are, but we have to keep our foot on the pedal and be ready,” Schneider added. It's great for our fans, they've been fantastic and they'll be there again for this seventh game.
“We have to take advantage of this,” the manager continued. When you play the seventh game that gets you to the World Series, that's awesome. This is why we make sacrifices throughout the year. “It’s something special and unique, but at the same time it needs to be treated as just another coincidence, even if that’s easier said than done.”
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:
- The Blue Jays are seeking their third World Series appearance in their history. They previously appeared in the grand final in 1992 and 1993, winning each time;
- Guerrero Jr., 26, born in Montreal while his father Vladimir was playing for the Expos, has an extraordinary .462 batting average in 10 games since the playoffs began. Most notably, he hit six home runs: three during the previous series against the New York Yankees and three more against the Mariners;
- In the recent past, Toronto also competed in the American League Championship Series in 2015 and 2016. The Blue Jays, who then included Quebec catcher Russell Martin, lost in six games against the Kansas City Royals and then in five games against the Cleveland Indians the following year;
- You'd have to go back to 1985, 40 years ago, to list the only Game 7 the Blue Jays played in the championship series. Toronto's oldest fans still remember that painful 6-2 loss to George Brett and the Royals. Dave Stieb was the Jays' losing pitcher at the time.
Toronto in Belieber fashion
Shane Bieber will be the Blue Jays' starting pitcher Monday night at Rogers Center.
“It means everything, I’m very happy and grateful for this opportunity. I think achieving this goal requires a combination of events and hard work,” he said Sunday night.
Shane Bieber
Photo by Megan Briggs/Getty Images via AFP
As for Bieber, 30, he was acquired by the Blue Jays at the July 31 trade deadline. After recovering from a serious right elbow injury, he made his first start with the Jays on August 22, giving up only one run in six innings to the Miami Marlins.
It was after this match that manager John Schneider announced that he had caught Bieber fever.
“I’m a Belieber,” he said, referring to the name usually given to the most devoted fans of Canadian singer Justin Bieber.
Blue Jays advantage?
Used last Wednesday in Seattle in Game 3 of this championship series against the Mariners, Shane Bieber did well, giving up just two runs over six innings in a 13-4 win. He took advantage of the opportunity to record eight strikeouts in the inning.
“It’s great to be a part of this adventure,” the former Cleveland pitcher continued. Every game is unique on an individual level, and that's the beauty of baseball. […]. I have great confidence in this group. “This is an opportunity for us to go out there and win.”
As in Game 3, the Mariners will trust George Kirby on the mound. The latter, however, struggled last Wednesday, scoring eight runs in just four innings.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr., George Springer and Andres Jimenez hit home runs at his expense.
“I'm honored and I'll do my best,” Kirby responded sheepishly on the eve of the big match. I like to play under pressure and I'm excited to start this game at number seven.
Anything is possible…
Schneider has already mentioned this with the Blue Jays, and the Mariners likely have a similar game plan with every player on the roster available for this game.
This means that we can see any player in the starting lineup playing as a striker at some point in the game for a particular team.
Because no… it's not a baseball game like any other.
TVA Sports will broadcast the match from 8 p.m. There will be a pre-match show at 7:30 p.m.
