To have a shot at defeating the Los Angeles Dodgers in the playoffs, the Toronto Blue Jays really need to avoid mistakes.
This was made painfully clear on Saturday night when they lost Game 7, notably due to Isaiah Kiner-Falefa’s failure to score during a critical moment in the bottom of the ninth inning.
Kiner-Falefa, a former Yankee, nearly became a World Series hero but his hesitant lead at third base may have cost Toronto the championship against the Dodgers.
In the ninth inning, with the score tied, Kiner-Falefa pinch ran for Bo Bichette, and managed to load the bases with a walk and being hit by a pitch, which left the Blue Jays with one out and a runner on third.
Dalton Varsho then hit a grounder to second base, where Miguel Rojas made the play. Unfortunately, he stumbled a bit and threw home.
The throw was right on time to tag Kiner-Falefa, with catcher Will Smith, who had previously hit the game-winning home run, making the decisive play just before Kiner-Falefa’s foot slid in.
After a lengthy review, the call stood, revealing that Kiner-Falefa had not taken a significant lead off third base.
“They told us to stay close to the bases, not to get doubled up on a hard hit. They wanted us to take a smaller lead,” Kiner-Falefa explained. So, that’s what he tried to do.
Earlier in the inning, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, taking over for Blake Snell, had a flyout from Ernie Clement to deep left center. There was a collision between Andy Page and Quique Hernandez, but Page managed to grab the catch, leading to extra innings.
The Blue Jays initially took the lead in the bottom of the 11th with a double from Vladimir Guerrero Jr. However, even after Kiner-Falefa, pinch-hitting for Bichette, advanced Guerrero to third with a bunt, the game ended with Addison Berger walking and Alejandro Kirk hitting into a double play, dashing their hopes, as they couldn’t score against Yamamoto.
This marks the second consecutive game where the Blue Jays faced issues on the base paths. In Game 6, Berger misread a fly ball from Andres Jimenez, resulting in a double play when Hernandez caught it and Rojas made a great play on the relay throw.
