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Instant Reaction: Blue Jays tie Tigers for second time in less than a week
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Photo credit: © Mike Watters-Imagn Images
Ryley Delaney
Mar 1, 2026, 15:45 ESTUpdated: Mar 1, 2026, 16:31 EST
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For the second time this Spring Training, the Toronto Blue Jays have tied a game.
On Sunday afternoon, they played the Detroit Tigers for the second time this spring, with this game also ending in a tie just like the result last Wednesday. Let’s take a look at what went on in this one.
The Blue Jays were the first to get on the board. To begin the top of the third, Rafael Lantigua walked, Charles McAdoo struck out, and Sean Keys hit a double to put runners on second and third with one out. Up stepped Jonatan Clase, who hit a double off Tarik Skubal to give the Jays a 2-0 lead.
It wasn’t until the bottom of the fourth that the Tigers even got a base runner. However, that inning saw the Tigers score twice, as Kerry Carpenter led off the inning with a single, followed by Gleyber Torres’ single. Thanks to an RBI double from Riley Greene, the Tigers cut the Blue Jays’ lead in half, and the tying run was brought in thanks to Spencer Torkelson’s single.
In the top of the sixth, the Jays restored their lead, as Clase began that inning with a lead-off single. Daulton Varsho then hit a double to put him and Clase in scoring position, then Jesús Sánchez drove in Clase with an RBI single, and Brandon Valenzuela grounded out to drive in another run.
But again, the Tigers found a way to tie it, this time in the bottom of the eighth. Their rally started with one out, as Corey Julks walked, John Peck hit a single, and Austin Slater drove in a run with an RBI single. That was followed by Eduardo Valencia’s sacrifice fly that drove in the tying run. Neither team scored in the ninth, thus a tie occurred.

Takeaways…

Have a day, Jonatan Clase. The outfielder hit a single and double off Tarik Skubal, who has won the last two American League Cy Young awards. He hit an additional single when the Jays got into the Tigers’ bullpen.
The Jays hit quite a few doubles in this game. Prospect Sean Keys hit one off Skubal, Daulton Varsho hit his second double of Spring Training off Will Vest, while both Carlos Mendoza and Je’Von Ward hit a double off Enmanuel De Jesus. Jesús Sánchez and Brandon Valenzuela had the other two hits.
On the pitching side of things, pitching prospect Grant Rogers had a strong start, striking out three batters in three perfect innings of work. The 6’7” righty averaged a tick under 93 mph with his sinker, and generated one whiff on 13 total swings. He could be a factor at some point during the 2026 season.
Out of the bullpen, Tommy Nance had a rough outing, giving up two earned runs in his inning of work. Chase Lee had a great outing, striking out two in his inning of work, while Javen Coleman pitched a scoreless inning with a hit allowed.
The Jays are back in action on Monday, hosting the Boston Red Sox in Dunedin. That game has a 1:07 PM ET start time, with Cody Ponce being the Blue Jays’ expected starter.
Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Blue Jays Nation, Oilersnation, and FlamesNation. She can be followed on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.

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