Early Wild Card Stumble Pushes Blue Jays to Brink
Blue Jays chants and cheers echoed around the building.
The energy was high, the stadium was packed, and the crowd was ready to explode. And then, the Mariners snatched it all away. With a hit batter, a double, and a Cal Raleigh homer, Seattle swung the momentum early and pushed the Blue Jays to the brink of elimination.
Toronto starter Alek Manoah quickly righted after the first-inning stumble, looking much like his usual self from then on. But that single slip—one bad half-inning—was all it took. Manoah allowed as many runs in the top half of the first inning as his previous four starts combined, and it was all the Mariners needed.
"I'm excited for tomorrow, and you try to win two in a row to win a series," manager John Schneider said. "This group is ready for it. They're up for the challenge. I'm looking forward to it tomorrow."
The first-inning breathing room gave Luis Castillo space to carve. The Mariners' ace peppered the strike zone, inducing soft grounders off Toronto bats and keeping the Jays far from the scoreboard. The Blue Jays had their share of singles, threatening with two-on rallies in the third and fifth, but each time Castillo snuffed them out.
With a pair of infield singles in the fifth, Bo Bichette came to the dish with the crowd willing him to cut into the lead. As he did all day, Castillo worked ahead with two quick strikes, earning big slashes and misses from the Toronto shortstop. And then, on a third-pitch sinker careening in on his hands, Bichette became the latest victim via soft grounder.
"When you get traffic on the bases, you want to come through with a big hit," Schneider said. "It's tough to do against a guy like that. Really tough with two outs."
Luis Castillo, Crazy 99mph Sinker. 🥴
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) October 7, 2022
21 inches of run. pic.twitter.com/aVoIgJQ5xa
As Castillo quelled each rally before they even started, the first inning loomed larger and larger. When Schneider came out to take the ball from Manoah in the sixth, the starter handed over the pill and walked back to the dugout, face emotionless. Though the crowd stood to salute Manoah, the righty wasn't satisfied with his result, slamming his glove and hat down before taking his seat on the dugout bench.
"I just think you have to go out there and execute pitches," Manoah said. "Obviously, I didn't do that today. There were a few that they really capitalized on. Just have to continue to execute."
In one way or another, every Blue Jay talked all season about getting here. The lingo was different— the next level, the goal, the playoffs—but the desire was the same. The 162-game regular season was all for this—92 wins earned Toronto a spot in October, and now it needs two wins in a row to stay alive.
Up Next: Kevin Gausman vs Robbie Ray
The Blue Jays have to beat a familiar face and the reigning American League Cy Young Award winner to stay alive on Saturday. Robbie Ray will return to the Rogers Centre mound to face off against Kevin Gausman, with first pitch at 4:07 pm ET.
Gausman left his final start of the regular season with a cut on his throwing hand. The Jays don't expect the cut, on Gausman's right middle finger, to limit the pitcher.
"He's been a leader in the clubhouse, a leader of the staff," Schneider. "He has had an amazing year, so we're looking for just another quality outing from him."
Mitch Bannon is a baseball reporter for Sports Illustrated covering the Toronto Blue Jays and their minor league affiliates.Twitter: @MitchBannon