SEATTLE – For a sprint like that, Alejandro Kirk needed a cooling-off period. Good thing Vladimir Guerrero Jr. grabbed a towel in the dugout to fan the man who had, at the time, scored the go-ahead run, though the Blue Jays wound up losing 6-2 in Game 5 of the American League Championship Series on Friday at T-Mobile Park.
Facing Seattleâ€s Bryan Woo out of the bullpen for the first time this series as the All-Star starter returns from a pectoral injury, Kirk led off the sixth inning with a sharp double to the right-center-field wall, pushing hard for second base as right fielder Dominic Canzone fielded the ball off the wall.
Canzone in right field, rather than elite-fielding outfielder Victor Robles, is important. Because two batters later, postseason revelation Ernie Clement lined a single in front of Canzone in right.
Kirk was off and running.
The husky All-Star catcher who steals strikes behind the plate and scorches the ball at the plate is, well, not known for his speed. His 24.3 feet/second sprint speed this year was in the second percentile of MLB baserunners. Kirk had been the runner on second when a single was hit 11 times this season, and he hadnâ€t scored once. The last time he had was back on Aug. 22, 2024, against the Angels.
Kirk was rounding third when Canzone fielded the ball in right field a Statcast-projected 205 feet from the plate. But third-base coach Carlos Febles waved Kirk home, likely knowing Canzoneâ€s poor fielding metrics. The throw was not close, bringing Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh way up the third-base line as Kirk crossed home plate.
For Kirk, it was a long run but an important one as the Blue Jays took the lead. For Clement, who advanced to second on the throw, it was redemption for his previous at-bat in the fourth inning, when he hit into a double play on a tapper in front of the plate, ending a bases-loaded Blue Jays threat.
But that would be all the Blue Jays managed, pushing them to the brink of elimination with the Mariners leading, 3-2, as the series shifts back to Toronto on Sunday. If the Blue Jays are going to force a Game 7, theyâ€ll need more savvy offensive plays like Kirk and Clement combined for in the sixth Friday.
Itâ€s a sprint to the finish now.
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