Game 4 in the Bronx. After the Blue Jays lost a heartbreaker to the New York Yankees on Tuesday night, with a myriad of fielding errors and missed opportunities at the plate, they seemed to have lost their momentum heading into the final game at Yankee Stadium. The Yankees weren’t going to go down without a fight, and the only choice Toronto had was to find its mojo again.

And by George, they did exactly just that on Wednesday night in the Bronx.

Game 4 didn’t set the Blue Jays up for success. They had used all of their starters on the ALDS roster and had to rely on their bullpen, whereas New York sent rookie Cam Schlittler as their starter, who was coming off a dominant Wild Card outing against the Boston Red Sox. On paper, the Blue Jays weren’t supposed to win this game based on this pitching matchup alone.

But the 2025 Blue Jays have been a different beast for more than 162 games. They have been a group that rarely struck out and put out better defence on most occasions, and that very approach is what set them apart from the Yankees in this fourth and last game of the ALDS.

Schlittler didn’t make it easy on the Blue Jays’ hitters. The only hitters that was mildly successful in the beginning were Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and George Springer, who helped put one run on the scoreboard for the Jays, but Toronto couldn’t find ways to do more damage because the 24-year-old starter was as nasty as advertised.

However, the Blue Jays kept pulling out their best calling card in a rough game against a tough pitcher: keep putting balls in play. That’s what Andrés Giménez did at the top of the seventh, which forced Jazz Chisholm Jr. to make a fielding error to put two Blue Jays on base. Springer may have struck out afterwards, but Nathan Lukes singled on a line drive to bring both Giménez and Ernie Clement to the plate to score two runs they needed to give the pitching some insurance. The score was now 4-1 in the Blue Jays’ favour and gave the team enough room to work with the remaining innings.

The persistent Blue Jays lineup managed to score one more insurance run at the top of the eighth with a crucial single from Myles Straw. The Yankees did threaten to come back at the bottom of the eighth and ninth, with bases loaded jam and Aaron Judge’s double, but Toronto denied New York from scoring anything more than two runs.

With Cody Bellinger’s strikeout at the bottom of the ninth, the Blue Jays clinched their spot in the ALCS. This game was a full embodiment of how the team played the entire season, including the playoffs so far. Everyone stepped up to play their game. Star players like Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Alejandro Kirk and George Springer came through in big moments. But when the bigger names were lost at the plate, guys like Addison Barger, Ernie Clement, Nathan Lukes and Myles Straw came through to get the job done.

That same dynamic played out for the Blue Jays’ pitching. Starters Chris Bassitt, Jose Berrios, Kevin Gausman and Max Scherzer were reliable for a good part of the regular season, but when they couldn’t carry the pitching, relievers like Braydon Fisher, Mason Fluharty, Jeff Hoffman, Eric Lauer (he also started many games for Toronto), Brendon Little, Yariel Rodriguez, Seranthony Dominguez, and Louis Varland stepped in to take care of business.

During their ALCS clinch celebrations, Sportsnet asked Jeff Hoffman how the Blue Jays were able to reap the success they are enjoying now. To that question, Hoffman simply answered that the team has been one big family with everyone gelling together and sticking together through the ups and downs. Their love, passion and persistence were on full display this ALDS, even with the blip of a Game 3. Nothing could hold in that kind of grind for too long, and it all came together in Game 4 for this scrappy team.

The job isn’t quite finished yet for this improbable Toronto team. They still have a best-of-seven ALCS to conquer and the World Series, if they manage to get there. So far, in 166 games, the Blue Jays have shown why they deserve a seat at the table with the best of the best in the league. Their offence is frustratingly maddening, their pitching can handle punches, and their defence has been clinic aside from a few critical gaffes.

They have displayed their good sides during this playoff, but their bad sides are something the team has to keep in mind if they want a shot at moving on to the World Series. A couple of mental lapses on the field can prove costly, a lethargic offence without meaningful hits won’t give a fighting chance, and leaky pitching can become the worst kind of vulnerability. Game 3 was the fruition of these nightmares and will have to serve as a lesson for the Blue Jays so that they don’t revert to the intolerable version of themselves.

Everything will stand out in a brighter spotlight. That’s the burden better teams have to bear as they make it deeper into the playoff stage. The Blue Jays will have to continue to clean up their games and play their best baseball if they want to avoid any teeth-clenchers down the line. No matter who their opponent will be in the ALCS, their task is to remain true to themselves, regardless of the ordeals along the way.

The Blue Jays finally proved Buck Martinez right, but their revenge tour is still very much in the roll. They were never supposed to be here after hitting rock bottom in 2024, yet they fought their way back to the top. And at least for now, there is nothing Toronto does better than revenge.