TORONTO — This one was right there for the Blue Jays.
George Springer continued his renaissance season with two home runs, Chris Bassitt held the Twins in check into the sixth inning and then the Blue Jays handed the game over to the bullpen with a 4-2 lead.
But Louis Varland allowed one run — his fifth consecutive outing with an earned run — and Jeff Hoffman imploded in the ninth, allowing four runs while recording just two outs before leaving the mound to a rarely heard sound at Rogers Centre this season: loud boos.
Soon afterwards, the Blue Jays had lost 7-5 to the Twins, losing a game that was entirely winnable to fall to 77-56 on the season.
“You’ve got to deal with it and you’ve got to move on,” said manager John Schneider. “The worst thing you can do is just sulk. This group has been so good about turning the page to tomorrow.”
Because the Red Sox and Yankees won Tuesday, the Blue Jays lost a game in the standings over their two closest pursuers in the American League East, and now lead Boston by 4.0 games with 29 to play.
While Varland’s struggles are uncharacteristic, it’s Hoffman whose struggles stand out the most here. He allowed two home runs, the first of Mickey Gasper’s career to lead off the ninth, followed by the third in two games for Matt Wallner, who broke the game open with a three-run shot.
All season, the Blue Jays have stood by Hoffman throughout his ups and downs. When he’s on, he can dominate opposing hitters. But only two relievers have allowed more home runs this season: Chad Green, who was released by the Blue Jays, and Jackson Rutledge, a long reliever for the Nationals.
With the playoffs approaching, the Blue Jays need to find a way to address Hoffman’s home run issues. Afterwards, Schneider said lapses in command have contributed to those big hits — but he made it clear he’ll continue going to Hoffman in big spots.
“Hoff’s been so good for us,” the manager said. “The closer’s role is scrutinized like my role, like a couple different roles in this game and that comes with it, but when he’s available and we want to save a game, I’m going to bring him in. He’s shown he can do it.”
Afterwards, Bassitt expressed confidence that Hoffman will bounce back, just as he has before.
“I don’t think much of it,” Bassitt said. “His numbers obviously aren’t where they need to be, but I think (he’s) the same guy that pretty much carried us for two straight months. And then, yes, had a couple bad ones. But overall, I trust him more than anyone. You’re allowed to have bad ones. Especially when we rely on you as much as we do. So yeah, I trust him to close every game.”
The late runs by the Twins overshadowed another spectacular night from Springer, who continues putting together an incredible bounce-back season. After a strong start to his Blue Jays career, Springer’s on-base percentage and slugging percentage had declined for three consecutive seasons, so it wasn’t clear whether he had much left at age 35. But while most players decline into their mid-thirties, Springer has done the opposite.
After Tuesday’s showing, Springer has a team-leading 24 home runs and a .929 OPS that ranks fifth among all hitters behind only Aaron Judge, Shohei Ohtani, Cal Raleigh and Kyle Schwarber. Now 35 years old, and in the fifth year of his six-year, $150 million contract, Springer’s playing his best baseball in years.
“He’s been so consistent,” Schneider said. “I’m just really happy for him personally to have this bounce-back year. We thought he could do this. You never lose faith. You trust him. And he’s been great. He’s been right in the middle of everything we’re doing and we’re going to need him to keep doing it.”
With 24 home runs on the season, Springer’s one away from tying his Blue Jays high of 25, set in 2022. Each passing day, it becomes more apparent that he’s still a difference-making player, one of the most important players on one of the American League’s top teams.
“Last year he was very defensive, and I give all the credit to him working really, really hard with the hitting coaches and changing that thought process,” Bassitt said. “It’s just confident swings and I don’t ever feel like he’s on his heels.”
In fact, when Schneider was asked to name a team MVP before Tuesday’s game, Springer’s name was one of a few he mentioned, along with Guerrero Jr., Bo Bichette and Eric Lauer (ultimately, Schneider’s answer was the team as a whole).
Thanks to Bassitt, this game stayed close through the middle innings before the Blue Jays’ bullpen took over. Over the course of 5.2 innings, Bassitt allowed two runs on four hits while walking three and striking out six. It’s the kind of outing that the Blue Jays have come to expect from Bassitt, now in the final season of his three-year, $63 million contract.
Tuesday’s loss aside, the Blue Jays have lots of reasons for optimism as they head down the stretch in search of a first-round bye and the home-field advantage that would come with it. From here, their position will improve further and faster if they can figure out the bullpen, too.
“We’ve gotten to this point for a reason, and the trust will never, ever waver with those guys coming out of the ‘pen,” Schneider said. “Some nights you don’t have it. Tonight was one of those nights.”