Another distinguishing factor behind Toronto\u2019s season-long success? Sporting the lowest strikeout rate in Major League Baseball. Combine hitting home runs with striking out fewer times than the opponent, and that\u2019s the secret sauce. When the Blue Jays can accomplish both of those feats within the same game, it is extremely difficult to lose.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Jays won Game 1 of the World Series by slugging three home runs against the Dodgers’ one. Toronto bats struck out just four times. How many times did Los Angeles batters whiff? A baker\u2019s dozen.\u00a0<\/p>\n
“At the end of the day, not striking out and hitting home runs is the holy grail,” shortstop Bo Bichette told me at the Rogers Centre after Friday\u2019s win. “It definitely starts with being good hitters first. Good hitters take care of mistakes, and we\u2019ve been taking care of mistakes. We have a lot of guys who can change the game with one swing. I think that\u2019s an underrated aspect of our team.”<\/p>\n
Blue Jays STUN Dodgers \ud83d\udea8 Jeter, A-Rod & Big Papi REACT to World Series Game 1, Pressure on LA \ud83d\ude05 While the power-hitting depth of Toronto\u2019s lineup might be underrated, their successful contact-driven philosophy is their worst-kept secret. There\u2019s just hardly anything anyone can do to thwart it.<\/p>\n The Blue Jays lineup forced Dodgers starter Blake Snell to throw 29 pitches in the first inning. Even though they loaded the bases against him and didn\u2019t score a run, no one in the home dugout was disappointed about it. Their lack of irritation might come as a surprise, since the Dodgers pitching staff allowed just four runs in the Championship Series against the Brewers. The rotation\u2019s 0.63 ERA was the lowest in CS history. But Toronto\u2019s game plan was to make Snell work and tire him out, and in that, the team was successful.\u00a0<\/p>\n ‘I don’t even remember’ \ud83d\ude02 Addison Barger Admits He Blacked Out After his World Series Grand Slam Still, when Blue Jays outfielder Daulton Varsho tied the game with a two-run home run off Snell in the fourth inning, it was “disgusting,” as his teammate Miles Straw put it. In the sixth inning, when Addison Barger hit the first pinch-hit grand slam in World Series history to give the Blue Jays a controlling 9-2 lead, it was expected.\u00a0<\/p>\n “We knew it was going to happen at some point, just didn\u2019t know when,” second baseman Isiah Kiner-Falefa said. “I think that\u2019s the special thing about this team. You just never know who it\u2019s going to be that night. We always joke about it when we show up to the field: \u2018Who\u2019s it going to be?\u2019 We know someone\u2019s going to step up, and tonight Barg stepped up in the big spot. But everybody did their job to get on base and pass the baton until that happened.”<\/p>\n The Blue Jays are flaunting their big bats throughout this postseason. (Photo by Richard Lautens\/Toronto Star via Getty Images) <\/p>\n As Jays players answered question after question about their offensive approach in a hazy and smoke-filled post-celebration clubhouse, it was clear that they were tired of talking about it.\u00a0<\/p>\n This is who they are. This is what they\u2019ve done all year.\u00a0<\/p>\n It helped earn them the American League pennant. If they can manage three more wins against the Dodgers, it might just get them a championship.\u00a0<\/p>\n “Overall, we just played our game,” Varsho said. “We didn’t try to do anything more. Honestly, we just showed everybody what we can do as a lineup. Just one of those games where you got to move on to tomorrow, because they’re going to come at us pretty hard. So you got to be able to turn the page really quick and trust ourselves and be able to do the same thing.”<\/p>\n The Blue Jays have the early advantage over the Dodgers in the Fall Classic, but they\u2019re always bracing for impact. Even after catcher Alejando Kirk slugged the team\u2019s third home run of the night to give Toronto an 11-2 lead, the Blue Jays dugout wasn\u2019t sure it would be enough to stop the powerhouse Dodgers from mounting a comeback.\u00a0<\/p>\n “I wanted us to score 100 runs,” Straw said. “No amount of runs is enough against them.”<\/p>\n Daulton Varsho on Blue Jays\u2019 Game 1 World Series win over Dodgers: ‘We\u2019ve done this all year’ But the Jays don\u2019t get overwhelmed by all the ways the Dodgers can beat them because, at this point, they know their offensive strategy is airtight. Left fielder Davis Schneider has fully bought into the fact that the team has a contact-driven approach, but that doesn\u2019t mean he\u2019s successful at it. So he tries to work the count and draw a walk. At least if he gets on base, he trusts that the guy behind him will drive him in.\u00a0<\/p>\n It\u2019s fair to wonder how the Blue Jays could be tired of talking about the triumphs of their offensive approach when it\u2019s relatively new. After all, Toronto finished last in the AL East last year. Until this October, the organization had not made it past the Wild Card round since 2016. As a whole, the Blue Jays offense was barely better than league average last year.\u00a0<\/p>\n But their World Series Game 1 victory over the Dodgers in front of an electric Rogers Centre crowd on Friday night represented their 102nd win of the year, including the regular season. This is a Blue Jays team that\u2019s feeling it. The confidence in their approach is apparent. To those who haven\u2019t watched them closely all year, their relentless plan of attack can be startling.\u00a0<\/p>\n To them, it\u2019s old news.<\/p>\n “One through nine, we have guys who are dialed in and who stick to their approach,” Schneider told me. “Over 162 games \u2014 and now, in the playoffs \u2014 this is just what we do.”<\/p>\n Deesha Thosar<\/a>\u00a0covers Major League Baseball as a reporter and columnist for FOX Sports. She previously covered the Mets as a beat reporter for the New York Daily News. The daughter of Indian immigrants, Deesha grew up on Long Island and now lives in Queens. Follow her on Twitter at\u00a0@DeeshaThosar<\/a>.<\/p>\n Want great stories delivered right to your inbox?\u00a0Create or log in to your FOX Sports account<\/a> and follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily!<\/p>\n FOLLOW Follow your favorites to personalize your FOX Sports experience ![\"Blue](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/61lxrd5848zfbtks.jpg\")
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