Series Recap: Blue Jays take two of three from Rangers as Myles Straw and Alejandro Kirk excel
Photo credit: © Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images
Aug 18, 2025, 12:00 EDTUpdated: Aug 18, 2025, 08:01 EDT
It seems as if the Toronto Blue Jays’ struggles are behind them.
After taking two of three from the Chicago Cubs, the Blue Jays welcomed the Texas Rangers for a three-game series, with the Boston Red Sox hot on their tails for the American League East division lead. Let’s take a look at what happened in the series!
Friday’s game had a poor start, as Kyle Higashioka hit a three-run home run in the top of the second to give the Rangers a 3-0 lead. The score remained that way until the bottom of the seventh, when Alejandro Kirk hit a two-run home run, but the game looked over when former Blue Jays Marcus Semien hit a two-run home run in the top of the eighth. That was until the Blue Jays’ four-run inning, capped off by a Kirk two-RBI single and his first career stolen base. What a fun game.
Seeing Kirk steal a base is a potential once-in-a-lifetime event. Saturday’s game saw another potential once-in-a-lifetime event, as Myles Straw hit two home runs in a 14-2 victory, or 20% of his big league home runs. Also hitting a home run were Daulton Varsho and Davis Schneider, the latter hitting it off former Blue Jay Rowdy Tellez, notably not a pitcher. In fact, the Blue Jays had such a big lead that they felt comfortable using a position player on the mound themselves, turning to Tyler Heineman.
Unfortunately, there was no magic in Sunday’s game. The Rangers took a 2-1 lead in the top of the second, the Blue Jays cut the lead in half, and then the Rangers took over, taking an 8-1 lead into the bottom of the sixth. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit a home run to make it 8-2, and George Springer hit a two-run home run in the bottom of the eighth. The Jays got two baserunners on after Springer’s home run, but Semien hit a two-run homer in the top of the ninth for a 10-4 victory.
On the whole, it was a good series for the Blue Jays. Straw’s two home runs in eight plate appearances gave him a 464 wRC+, the best on the team. Davis Schneider wasn’t far behind, with a 414 wRC+. Daulton Varsho (243 wRC+), Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (204 wRC+), Bo Bichette (194 wRC+), Alejandro Kirk (184 wRC+), and George Sprigner (164 wRC+) were the regulars with a strong series.
Andrés Giménez had an okay series, finishing with a 96 wRC+. Addison Barger (37 wRC+), Ernie Clement (-2 wRC+), and Nathan Lukes (-48 wRC+) had a rough series with the twig, but Lukes made a handful of nice plays in the outfield.
Eric Lauer had a good start despite a lot of traffic, giving up one earned run in five innings of work. Chris Bassitt gave up three earned runs in five innings of work, but kept the Blue Jays in the game. José Berríos had another rough start, giving up six earned runs in four and one-third innings. I’m not sure how you proceeded with Berríos when Shane Bieber is activated.
As for relievers, Louie Varland had a tough series, giving up two home runs to give him a 20.25 ERA for the series. One of those home runs had one of Mason Fluharty’s runners on, giving him a 6.75 ERA in an inning and a third. Braydon Fisher had a tough outing on Sunday, giving up two runs for a 9 ERA in two innings of work. Heineman also gave up a run, but that doesn’t count.
Jeff Hoffman, Yariel Rodríguez, Brendon Little, and Seranthony Domínguez all had bounce-back series, as they all put up zeros in their outings. Tommy Nance also had a good appearance, striking out four in two scoreless innings on Saturday.
Next up for the Blue Jays is a three-game series against the Pittsburgh Pirates, with Paul Skenes set to start on Monday. Over their next nine games, the Jays face the Pirates, Miami Marlins, and Minnesota Twins; it really feels like they need to win seven or eight of these games.
Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Blue Jays Nation, Oilersnation, and FlamesNation. She can be followed on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.