TORONTO (AP) — Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit his sixth home run of the postseason, rookie Trey Yesavage struck out seven in 5 2/3 innings, and the Toronto Blue Jays forced a Game 7 in the American League Championship Series by beating the Seattle Mariners 6-2 on Sunday night.
The series will be decided Monday night in Toronto, marking only the second Game 7 in Blue Jays history. Toronto previously lost to Kansas City in the 1985 ALCS. Seattle, the only big-league team without a pennant, will be playing in a postseason Game 7 for the first time. The winner of Monday’s matchup faces the NL champion Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series beginning Friday.
The Blue Jays turned three double plays behind Yesavage, including two that came with the bases loaded to escape critical jams. This made Toronto the first team to induce consecutive bases-loaded, inning-ending double plays in a postseason game. They are only the fourth team ever to turn two such double plays in a single postseason game.
Toronto also capitalized on Seattle’s season-high three errors. By comparison, the Blue Jays have made just four errors in 10 playoff games.
Guerrero’s sixth career postseason home run — all hit this year — tied him with José Bautista and Joe Carter for the most in Blue Jays history. Bautista, notably, threw out the ceremonial first pitch before the game.
Addison Barger homered and drove in three runs for Toronto, who had lost their previous four games when facing postseason elimination. That streak dated back to Game 5 of the 2016 ALCS against Cleveland and included wild-card round losses to Tampa Bay in 2020, Seattle in 2022, and Minnesota in 2023.
Guerrero’s leadoff homer in the fifth inning made it 5-0 and chased Mariners starter Logan Gilbert from the game. Gilbert allowed five runs, four earned, and seven hits in four innings.
Yesavage took a shutout into the sixth inning before being charged with two runs and six hits, five of them singles. Five of his seven strikeouts came on his split-finger fastball, which was also responsible for both bases-loaded double-play grounders.
The 22-year-old right-hander threw a season-high 31 splitters during the game, generating 10 swings and misses on that pitch and five more on his slider.
This marked Yesavage’s third major league start in the playoffs. He’s now 2-1 in three postseason starts after going 1-2 in three regular-season starts.
Seattle loaded the bases in the third inning thanks to two walks and a single but were denied when slugger Cal Raleigh grounded into a 3-6-1 double play. Raleigh’s first-pitch grounder off his bat registered 101 mph. He finished the game 0 for 3 with three strikeouts.
The Mariners faced another bases-loaded opportunity in the fourth inning but came up empty again when J.P. Crawford grounded into a 4-6-3 double play.
Seattle eventually broke through in the sixth inning, chasing Yesavage from the game. Josh Naylor hit a solo home run—the third of his postseason—before Yesavage exited after Randy Arozarena’s base hit. Eugenio Suárez greeted Toronto reliever Louis Varland with an RBI single.
Toronto also took advantage of fielding errors by Julio Rodríguez in center field and Suárez at third base to score twice in the second inning. Barger and Isiah Kiner-Falefa delivered RBI singles during the frame.
Ernie Clement contributed a two-out triple off the left-field wall in the third and later scored when Barger homered, marking his second postseason home run.
George Springer started at designated hitter for Toronto and went 0 for 4 with a walk. He exited in the seventh inning of Friday’s Game 5 loss in Seattle after being hit on the right kneecap by a 95.6 mph pitch from Bryan Woo.
Guerrero was hit by a pitch from Seattle reliever Matt Brash in the seventh inning. He moved to second on Alejandro Kirk’s single and was advancing on a wild pitch when he scored on a throwing error by Raleigh.
Looking ahead, Toronto is expected to start right-hander Shane Bieber on Monday. Bieber allowed two runs and four hits over six innings in Game 3, a 13-4 Blue Jays win, striking out eight and walking one as he bounced back from a rough outing against the Yankees in the Division Series.
Seattle plans to start right-hander George Kirby, who allowed eight runs and eight hits, including three home runs, over four innings in Game 3.
