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Instant Reaction: Blue Jays’ offence explodes in 8-1 victory over Mariners
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Photo credit: © John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images
Ryley Delaney
Aug 28, 2026, 22:00 EDTUpdated: Aug 28, 2026, 22:30 EDT
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That may have been the best the Toronto Blue Jays have looked all season.
On Friday evening, the reigning American League pennant winners hosted the Seattle Mariners in an American League Championship Series. Just like Game 7 back on October 20th, this game went in favour of the Blue Jays thanks to an offensive explosion.
But before they even got a chance to bat, the Mariners got on the board, as Dominic Canzone took Dylan Cease deep. Thankfully, the Blue Jays immediately responded in the bottom of the first, as Vladimir Guerrero Jr’s  double drove in the game-tying run. It was the first baseman’s first RBI at home since July 23rd.
The Jays weren’t done there though. George Springer hit a single, putting runners on the corners after a throwing error. Jesús Sánchez was hit by a pitch, bringing up Kazuma Okamoto with the bases loaded. The third baseman hit a sacrifice fly, which was followed by an RBI single by Andrés Giménez to make it 3-1.
Neither team scored for the next three innings, but the Blue Jays got back on the board in their half of the fifth. Nathan Lukes became the third Blue Jays’ hitter to hit double-digit home runs, taking Emerson Hancock deep to make it 4-1. Two batters later, Springer re-opened a deep wound for Mariners’ fans, hitting a home run to make it 5-1.
With two on, Dylan Cease struck out Josh Naylor for his eighth of the game. He finished with a line of 6 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 8 K, and also earned his ninth win of the season. A lead-off home run by Okamoto made it 6-1, then the Jays tacked on two more runs in the seventh.

Takeaways…

Dylan Cease struck out eight, the 19th consecutive game he’s struck out at least seven, something that hasn’t been done in two and a half decades. The performance lowered his season ERA to 2.33 and his FIP to 2.42. Cam Schlittler went five and two-thirds of scoreless baseball on Friday, but walked five, a concerning trend in his past five games.
It’s nice to win a blowout game, as the Jays high-leverage relievers got another day of rest. Mason Fluharty pitched a scoreless inning with a strikeout and a walk. Paul Sewald walked a batter and gave up a hit, but got out of the inning unscathed, and CJ Van Eyk recorded the final three outs.
But without question, the biggest bright spot was the Blue Jays’ bats. Maybe it was memories of his Game 7 home run in the ALCS, but George Springer had a monstrous performance, going 4-4 with a double and a home run.
Nathan Lukes also hit a home run to continue his hot streak, his 10th of the season. He’s now the third Blue Jays’ player with double digit home runs, far behind Kazuma Okamoto’s 27 home runs, including one on Friday.
After being boo’ed on Thursday, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. had a much better game. His first at-bat saw him double, driving in his first run at Rogers Centre in over a month. That was his lone hit, but he just missed a home run in the bottom of the seventh, and also rocketed a ball that unfortunately found a glove.
The Jays got some luck in the out of town scoreboard, as the Cleveland Guardians fell to the Kansas City Royals. With a Blue Jays win and a Guardians loss, they move to two games behind the American League East team for the final wild card spot.
Saturday’s game has a 3:07 PM ET start time, with José Soriano expected to start. This one will be on Sportsnet.
Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Blue Jays Nation, DFOEdmonton, and DFOCalgary. She can be followed on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.
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