It only took one bad decision for things to unravel for the Toronto Blue Jays in Game 5 of the ALCS.<\/p>\n
Heading into the bottom of the eighth inning, the Jays were six outs away from taking a 3-2 series lead over the Seattle Mariners. Toronto was clinging to a 2-1 lead at the moment, with Cal Raleigh coming to the plate in what would be one of the most important moments of the ALCS.<\/p>\n
Instead of going to one of his higher-leverage relievers in Jeff Hoffman or Seranthony Dom\u00ednguez, Blue Jays manager John Schneider opted to go with Brendon Little. It was a decision that quickly turned sour.<\/p>\n
Little immediately gave up a game-tying home run to Raleigh and walked the next two batters. Dom\u00ednguez came in, but the stage was already set as he hit Randy Arozarena to load the bases, which led to a crushing grand-slam home run from Eugenio Su\u00e1rez.<\/p>\n
Seattle won the game in that inning, with the final score reading 6-2 to push the Mariners to one win away from their first-ever World Series appearance. The Jays, on the other hand, are now on the brink of elimination.<\/p>\n
It was a baffling decision to go to Little in that moment, and Schneider offered up a reason for making it after the game.<\/p>\n
\u201cWanted to see that part of the lineup see different guys. We talked about it all series. Little\u2019s been one of our best pitchers in big spots,\u201d Schneider said. \u201cI trust every single guy on this roster. No one feels worse than Little, than [Dom\u00ednguez], or me.<\/p>\n
\u201cThought about [using Hoffman] for sure. Again, decisions are hard. Being convicted in a process is important. You make a decision and you leave it behind you, that\u2019s part of baseball. Second-guessing is part of it. Thought about it for sure.\u201d<\/p>\n
“I trust every single guy on this roster. Today it didn\u2019t work out.”<\/p>\n
John Schneider on the decision to bring in Brendon Little to start the eighth inning. pic.twitter.com\/xexXWe4Hh5<\/a><\/p>\n