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Blue Jays Bounce Back with Dominant Win in Game 3
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- Blue Jays Bounce Back with Dominant Win in Game 3
John Froschauer-Imagn Images
The Toronto Blue Jays struck back in Game 3 of their American League Championship Series against the Seattle Mariners , pummeling starting pitcher George Kirby on the way to a 13-4 win. The Blue Jays slugged five home runs, erasing an early 2-0 deficit. Star first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. came a triple shy of the cycle, reaching base in all five of his plate appearances after a disappointing start to the series.
Starting pitcher Shane Bieber put together a quality start, striking out eight batters across six innings of two run ball. Even better, he needed just 88 pitches to do so, and passed the baton to the bullpen with an overwhelming 12-2 lead.
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Here are the winners and losers from Game 3.
Winner: Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
Credit: John Froschauer-Imagn Images
After setting a host of postseason batting records in the Division Series against the Yankees , Vladimir Guerrero Jr. began the ALCS in a mini-slump, going 1-for-8 through two games. He snapped out of it big time in Game 3, going 4-for-4 with an infield single — no mean feat for the six foot tall, 245 pound tank of a first baseman — two doubles, two walks and a solo home run.
Guerrero Jr. scored three runs and terrorized Mariners pitchers throughout, drawing an intentional walk with one on and one out in the sixth. That set the table for a three-run home run from catcher Alejandro Kirk that gave Toronto a ten run lead.
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Vladdy Jr., as he's affectionately known, is now slashing an otherworldly .464/.515/.964 with two doubles, four home runs and six walks in seven games this postseason.
Winner: Andrés Giménez
Credit: John Froschauer-Imagn Images
Traditional wisdom has the worst hitter in the lineup batting ninth, minimizing their plate appearances, but some managers like to plug another leadoff-hitting prototype — speedy with a high on-base percentage — into the nine-hole in order to give the lineup a jolt as it turns over.
Shortstop Andrés Giménez might not serve as that sort of player historically, as he reached base just 28.5 percent of the time in 2025, but he de facto filled that role in Game 3, going 3-for-5 with a home run, two singles and two runs scored.
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Giménez tied the game in the third inning with a two-run bomb, giving the Blue Jays one of their first breaths of life this series and plating the first of 12 consecutive runs.
Loser: George Kirby
Credit: Steven Bisig-Imagn Images
Mariners' starting pitcher George Kirby melted down in Game 3, allowing eight runs in four innings and ballooning his postseason ERA to 7.07 despite two excellent starts to begin October . Kirby struck out four batters and allowed three home runs, pulled from the game in the fifth inning soon after hanging a slider to fellow right-hander Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
He faced a tough task, pitching on four days' rest instead of the usual five even though the Mariners had played just two games since his last start. After retiring six of the first seven batters he faced, Kirby ran into trouble quickly in the third inning, giving up the lead after allowing a double and a home run on his first three pitches.
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That was but a sign of things to come as the Blue Jays tormented Kirby, eight of nine spots in the lineup reaching base against him at least once.
Loser: Dan Wilson
Credit: Steven Bisig-Imagn Images
Mariners manager Dan Wilson deserves some of the blame for George Kirby's brutal start. Moving him up in the rotation to pitch on four days' rest over Luis Castillo , who last appeared for just 1.1 innings on Oct. 10, was an aggressive move, especially with the Mariners bringing home a 2-0 series lead. It clearly didn't pan out.
Wilson could've given Kirby a merciful hook at any point after the Blue Jays' five-run third inning; he certainly wasn't shy about pulling fellow Mariners starter Logan Gilbert from the game early after pitching him on an aggressive schedule in Game 2. Instead, Wilson left Kirby in the game to wallow, limiting the Mariners' hopes of coming back… and giving the Blue Jays life in a series where they looked dead in the water.
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