Blink and you may have missed it, but Louis Varland had one of the most dominant appearances by a Toronto Blue Jays reliever you’ll ever see.

It took the Blue Jays’ closer three minutes and six seconds to shut down the Boston Red Sox in order in the bottom of the ninth inning last night. Varland continues to make his mark in the Blue Jays bullpen, making a concrete case to be named to the American League All-Star team as one of the best relievers in baseball this year.

He was one pitch away from throwing an immaculate inning, taking only 10 pitches to strike out Ceddanne Rafaela, Wilyer Abreu, and Willson Contreras. And it wasn’t particularly close, either, as Varland collected five whiffs on his ten pitches, and even touched 100 miles per hour on three pitches.

Even the opposing Red Sox broadcast booth couldn’t help but acknowledge the complete stranglehold Varland had on the hitters he faced.

It may have been only one inning, but it was a masterclass in how high-leverage relievers should come into a game, fire bullets, and head home. For historical context, what Varland did last night put him in company with only four other Blue Jays relievers in franchise history.

By taking only 10 pitches to strike out three batters in an inning of relief, Varland was the latest of only five Blue Jays relievers to use 10 or fewer pitches to strike out the side in relief. The other relievers on that list are Ken “100 Miles” Giles, Drew Storen, Steve Delabar, and David Wells. (Hat tip to Stathead for the info).

Despite one four-seam fastball that missed inside to Abreu, Varland was *this close* to getting an immaculate inning. There are only two of those in franchise history, one belonging to Delabar, the former All-Star. Delabar threw nothing but strikes against the Oakland A’s on July 30, 2013.

Just like Varland, Delabar also had five swinging strikes, as he pounded the strike zone against the Athletics. And before they knew what had happened, everybody was already back in the dugout.

Update: Hat tip to Joshua Howsam on X for reminding me Thomas Pannone also has an immaculate inning for the Blue Jays, albeit it was a multi-inning appearance. Pannone struck out the first three batters he faced on nine pitches back on April 14, 2019.

What might be even more impressive, Pannone came back and put up zeroes for two more innings, for a scoreless and hitless three-inning performance against the Tampa Bay Rays.

Giles also featured some triple-digit heat in his arsenal, as he struck out the side on 10 pitches against the Baltimore Orioles on September 25, 2019.

Storen was the Blue Jays’ short-lived closer during a period in 2016, and he showed his dominance by giving the Philadelphia Phillies nothing to hit on June 13, 2016. And David Wells pitched in relief for the Jays on May 17, 1990, striking out the side against the Seattle Mariners.

Fans don’t get to witness that kind of surgical precision very often in late-game situations, but the Red Sox had no answer for Varland in the ninth inning for his 14th save in as many opportunities.