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Instant Reaction: Blue Jays’ late rally falls short in 7-4 loss to Phillies
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Photo credit: © Kevin Sousa-Imagn Images
Ryley Delaney
Jun 11, 2026, 07:00 EDTUpdated: Jun 11, 2026, 11:25 EDT
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The Toronto Blue Jays just couldn’t dig themselves out of the early hole.
On Wednesday, they played the series finale and rubber match against the Philadelphia Phillies, dropping the contest 7-4 despite a late rally attempt. Let’s take a look at what went on in this one.
Max Scherzer started the affair with his 3,500th career strikeout, becoming just the 11th pitcher in big league history to reach that mark. After notching his 3,501st strikeout, Scherzer gave up a solo home run to Bryce Harper.
Things went from bad to worse in the top of the third, as Kyle Schwarber led off the inning with a single. Trea Turner also hit a single, before Scherzer got two outs thanks to a ground out and pop out. Unfortunately, Alec Bohm hit a three-run home run to give the Phillies a 4-0 lead.
Scherzer struck out the lead-off batter in the fourth, but surrendered a single to the final batter he faced. Mason Fluharty replaced the 41-year-old, and gave up a two-run blast to Kyle Schwarber.
The Blue Jays mustered just one single and two walks through the first four innings. But with one out, Myles Straw and Nathan Lukes hit back-to-back singles to put two runners on. George Springer struck out, then Lukes committed a baserunning mistake to end the inning.
In the bottom of the sixth, the Blue Jays finally got on the board. Ernie Clement and Kazuma Okamoto drew back-to-back walks, and the run was driven in by Brandon Valenzuela’s single. With runners on the corners and two outs, the Jays turned to Andrés Giménez as a pinch hitter, who promptly flew out. Braydon Fisher gave up a run in the top of the seventh.
But the Blue Jays showed some fight in the final third of the game. With Chase Shugart on the mound, Straw led off the bottom of the seventh with a single. Shugart’s command disappeared, walking the next three batters to give the Jays their second run. 
Clement and Okamoto hit back-to-back sacrifice flies to get the Jays to within three, but Yohendrick Piñango grounded out to end the inning.
Aside from a Straw single, it was a quiet bottom of the eighth for the Blue Jays, but they were able to flip the order for the bottom of the seventh. With Jhoan Duran pitching his third consecutive game, Springer led off the inning with a single off a splitter. 
Then Vladimir Guerrero Jr. spiked a middle-middle splitter into the ground, giving the Phillies a tailor made double play. Clement followed that with a single, but Okamoto struck out looking to end the game.

Takeaways…

It was a tough start for Max Scherzer, who pitched just three and one-third innings while giving up two home runs and five earned runs. He struck out his 3,500th batter, one of many accolades for the first ballot Hall of Famer, but it’s been a rough season. In his 22 innings pitched, Scherzer has a 10.23 ERA and 8.79 FIP, all while pitching into the fifth inning just twice.
With Shane Bieber starting for the Buffalo Bisons on Thursday, Max Scherzer’s future, at least in the rotation, is in the air. Maybe Scherzer gets one more start, but among pitchers with 20 or more innings, Scherzer’s ERA is the worst in Major League Baseball.
The Blue Jays have an off-day on Thursday, so the bullpen was emptied. Mason Fluharty and Bradyon Fisher each gave up an earned run, but Tommy Nance, Jeff Hoffman, Spencer Miles, and Tyler Rogers all pitched scoreless outings. Miles was the best of the bunch, generating an inning-ending double play in the top of the seventh, keeping the Blue Jays within range.
As for their offence, they had plenty of base runners, notching eight hits and seven walks, but they stranded nine and went 1-6 with runners in scoring position. With the bases loaded and no outs in the seventh, the Jays managed to score three runs, but failed to get the big hit. So basically the same issues that has plagued them throughout the season.
It didn’t help that all eight hits were singles. Myles Straw had three of them, while George Springer, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Ernie Clement, Brandon Valenzuela, and Nathan Lukes all finished with one hit.
So far this home stand, the Jays are 3-3, taking two of three from the Baltimore Orioles over the weekend, before dropping two of three against the Phillies. With a 33-36 record, the Blue Jays play three crucial games against the New York Yankees this weekend.
Last season, the Blue Jays dominated the Yankees at Rogers Centre winning all but one of the seven games they played. The Jays took over the division lead by sweeping the Yankees in a four-game series in the first series the teams played at Rogers Centre.
Friday’s game has an unusual start time, as first pitch is set for 7:37 PM ET. The Blue Jays’ starter is yet to be determined.
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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