The Toronto Blue Jays are officially headed to the World Series after defeating the Seattle Mariners 4-3 in Game 7 of the American League Championship Series.The Blue Jays pulled off an incredible comeback — both in Monday’s game, as well as the series — to advance to the World Series for the first time since 1993.
The Mariners took control early in the game, as they chased what would have been the franchise’s first-ever World Series berth. Julio Rodríguez opened the game with a double, scoring on a Josh Naylor single. Toronto quickly tied things up in the bottom half of the first, but Seattle’s Rodríguez and Cal Raleigh each crushed solo home runs, pushing the Mariners ahead 2-1 and later 3-1 heading into the late innings.
Toronto fought back, with veteran outfielder George Springer at bat in the bottom of the seventh. With two runners on base, Springer launched a three-run homer, erasing the deficit and giving Toronto a 4-3 lead they would not relinquish. Springer’s clutch home run elevated his place in baseball history, as he is now tied with Kyle Schwarber for the third-most home runs in postseason play with 23. (Manny Ramirez holds the record with 29, and Springer’s former Astros teammate Jose Altuve has 27).
Game 1 of the World Series against the reigning-champion Los Angeles Dodgers is set for Friday at a Rogers Centre in Toronto.
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