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Instant Reaction: Story of lethargic Blue Jays’ offence remains the same in penultimate game of the 2026 season
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Photo credit: © John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images
Cynthia Ryley Delaney
Sep 26, 2026, 18:00 EDTUpdated: Sep 26, 2026, 17:57 EDT
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The 2026 Toronto Blue Jays are going out with a whimper.
As has been the case all season long, the Blue Jays’ bats went cold, this time falling 5-1 to the Cincinnati Reds in the penultimate game of the season. Let’s take a look at what went on in Saturday afternoon’s game.
After a scoreless top of the first thrown by Trey Yesavage, the Blue Jays got the first two runners on base thanks to a pair of four-pitch walks. However, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. struck out on three pitches, then Alejandro Kirk grounded into a double play to end the inning. It also turned out to be the Blue Jays’ best chance to get on the board while the game was relatively close.
In the top of the second, the Reds took a 1-0 lead as JJ Bleday hit a 1-0 fastball over the centre field fence. That was Yesavage’s lone blemish, as he threw just 30 pitches over his two innings of work, striking out three.
Spencer Miles had an uncharacteristically poor outing, giving up two runs (one earned) over his inning of work. A lead-off walk and a single came back to burn the Blue Jays, as a double stolen base put two runners in scoring position, and an error allowed the runner from third to score. Later that inning, Eugenio Suárez hit an RBI double to make it 3-0. Thankfully, Miles stranded two runners in scoring position thanks to a pair of strikeouts.
Braydon Fisher threw a scoreless inning, setting up John Klein to make his Blue Jays debut in the top of the fifth. Overall, he went four innings, striking out five and walking two. The Blue Jays’ defence let him down as well, as he allowed two unearned runs after Sean Keys committed a fielding error in the top of the fifth.
As for the Jays’ lone run, Kazuma Okamoto led off the bottom of the seventh with a walk. Josh Smith hit a one-out double, putting two runners in scoring position, then Andrés Giménez drove in Okamoto with a ground out.

Takeaways…

It was a pretty rough game for the Blue Jays’ offence, which essentially has been the story of the season. After getting the first two runners on base, an awful at-bat resulting in a strikeout was paired with an inning-ending double play, killing all momentum.
Overall, the Jays mustered just five hits with two doubles. They stranded six runners and went 0-8 with runners in scoring position, the biggest reason why they won’t get an attempt to head back to the World Series.
Brett Bateman had one of those two doubles. Returning to the lineup, the Blue Jays’ centre fielder had another multi-hit game and also drew a walk, bringing his batting average to .325. What a pickup he has been. Josh Smith has also been a sneaky good trade deadline addition, as he hit his fifth double of the season, his second since joining the Blue Jays. There’s a super utility spot for the 2027 season up for the grabs.
Trey Yesavage made his second start since coming off the injured list, going just two innings with three strikeouts and a solo home run given up. Hopefully, he can stay healthy next season as he figures to be a key member of the rotation.
John Klein also threw his name in the hat to be a depth starter next season. In his debut, he struck out five over four innings of work. The only blemish to a great outing was a pair of unearned runs due to a fielding error earlier in the inning.
Spencer Miles could factor in the team’s rotation next season as well, though he had a rare tough outing in what will be his final game of the season. Braydon Fisher threw a scoreless inning, and Brendon Little’s strong return continued, striking out a batter in a clean inning.
As it stands, the Blue Jays have the 13th-best odds to move up to the first overall pick in the 2027 MLB Draft, just over 1%. That said, they have a 10.3 percent chance to move into the top six, which means their first round pick won’t drop back 10 spots. The lowest they can drop in the standings is 11th, but it’d require the Minnesota Twins and St. Louis Cardinals to win their remaining two games.
Moreover, the Jays would have to drop the series finale against the Cincinnati Reds on Sunday afternoon. Max Scherzer is expected to start the game in what could be his last appearance in a Hall of Fame career. It has a 3:07 PM ET start time.
Cynthia Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Blue Jays Nation, DFOEdmonton, and DFOCalgary. She can be followed on Twitter @CynthiaRDelaney.
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