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José Berríos hurled a gem as the Blue Jays pick up a much needed win against the Boston Red Sox
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Photo credit: Kevin Sousa/USA Today
Ryley Delaney
Sep 15, 2023, 22:03 EDTUpdated: Sep 15, 2023, 22:09 EDT
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The Blue Jays are officially BACK.
Toronto took on the Boston Red Sox for the two team’s final meeting of the year on Friday evening. Thankfully, the Jays got back in the win column, defeating the Red Sox 3-0.
Let’s take a look at the Blue Jays Nation’s Player of the Game, as well as things worth mentioning.

Blue Jays Nation’s Player of the Game: José Berríos

This one was a tough one, but Berríos eeked out Vladimir Guerrero Jr. for this game’s honours.
Berríos has been fantastic this season, and this continued as he finished with a line of 7 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 8 K.
His ERA dropped from 3.63 to 3.49, while his FIP dropped from 4.15 to 4.03. The Puerto Rican native pitched for the first time on Roberto Clemente day, and oh man, did the Blue Jays ever need it.

Things worth mentioning:

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is getting hot. The 24-year-old first baseman hit his second home run in as many days, scoring the Blue Jays only three runs in the game. Thankfully, it was enough for the win. Guerrero Jr. is  now slashing .265/.340/.438 with 23 homers in 629 plate appearances, and has a 114 wRC+. Keep it up, Vlad.
The bullpen shut it down. Berríos did what he does, eating seven innings, but the two Jordans got it done in high leverage. Jordan Hicks finished with a line of 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K, while closer Jordan Romano finished with a line of 1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K. The bullpen has struggled as of late, but this was a good game for them.
Alejandro Kirk continued to hit well the past few weeks, going 1-3 with his 15th double. Unfortunately, he was thrown out on the base paths, a common Blue Jays mistake this season. However, he stole some strikes for the Blue Jays pitchers, so it’s hard to be mad at him.
Davis Schneider has cooled off over the past week, as he has just three hits in his last 27 plate appearances. Granted, one was his eighth home run, and he also had a double in the same game, but this was to be expected. Still, the power potential in his bat is reason enough to keep him in the lineup.

Out of town scoreboard:

As I write this, the Texas Rangers are playing the Cleveland Guardians. However, the game is all but done as Texas is down 12. Houston is facing off against Kansas City, while the Seattle Marinershost the Los Angeles Dodgers. 
If Seattle loses, Toronto will only be a half game behind the Mariners (who have the tiebreaker) and a game and a half behind the Texas Rangers (who also have the tiebreaker).
Ideally, the Blue Jays should be chasing the Mariners, as they have the much harder schedule, facing the Dodgers, Athletics, Texas (seven games), and Houston. If Texas can win five of seven against Seattle, the Jays are in a pretty good position, even if they’re technically relying on another team.
Either way, it’ll be a fun race to October baseball, and this was a great start! Game two of the three-game series will be on Saturday at 3:07 PM EDT.
As always, you can follow me on Twitter, Instagram, and Threads @Brennan_L_D.

ARTICLE PRESENTED BY BETANO

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