TORONTO — Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and the Toronto Blue Jays are going to the playoffs for the second straight year.
Toronto lost 7-5 to Taylor Walls and the Tampa Bay Rays in 10 innings on Saturday, but the Blue Jays clinched an American League wild card when Seattle lost 6-1 to Texas.
The Blue Jays were swept by the Mariners in the wild-card round last year. They also earned a wild card in 2020 and were swept in that postseason appearance as well, losing to the Rays.
Toronto hasn’t won a postseason game since it was eliminated by Cleveland in five games in the 2016 AL Championship Series.
The Blue Jays (89-72) are still awaiting their postseason position this year. They are tied with Houston in the wild-card standings after the Astros completed a 1-0 victory over the Diamondbacks.
“It’s hectic, it’s stressful and all that kind of stuff,” Blue Jays manager John Schneider said right after Saturday’s loss to the Rays. “But this is why you play. It’s exciting, it’s up and down, back and forth, all that kind of stuff. But at the end of the day we control our own fate, so that part of it feels really good.”
Tampa Bay’s Junior Caminero, who drove in a run in the 10th, said the Rays enjoyed sending a sellout crowd of 42,097 home unhappy.
“It’s all good for us,” Caminero said through an interpreter. “We’re doing everything we can to win and get the victory. We don’t really care about the fans over here; we’re just over here trying to do our job and win the game.”
Walls lifted the Rays to a 6-4 lead with a two-run single off Jordan Hicks (3-9) with two out in the 10th. Caminero then drove in Raimel Tapia with an infield single.
“We’re kind of just going out there and trying to cause some chaos right now,” said Rays outfielder Josh Lowe, who had two hits and drove in a run. “It’s pretty fun.”
Rays right-hander Chris Devenski (6-4) pitched two innings for the win, working around Bo Bichette‘s RBI double in the 10th.
“Devenski really stepped up in a big, big way for us,” Rays manager Kevin Cash said.
Harold Ramirez had three hits for the Rays, including a tying two-run homer off Trevor Richards in the fifth.
George Springer hit a two-out double off Devenski in the bottom of the ninth, but Cavan Biggio flied out to send it to extra innings.
Daulton Varsho homered and drove in three runs, but it wasn’t enough for the Blue Jays.
Tampa Bay’s Yandy Díaz entered as a pinch hitter in the 10th inning and struck out on three pitches. Díaz (.330) trails Texas shortstop Corey Seager (.331 entering play Saturday) in a tight race for the AL batting title.
Isaac Paredes hit an RBI single off Blue Jays left-hander Hyun Jin Ryu in the first inning, and the first of Lowe’s two doubles made it 2-0 in the third.
“With these injuries that we have, we need guys like Josh to continue to step up and he has,” Cash said.
Varsho homered off right-hander Cooper Criswell to begin the Toronto third, his 20th. He put the Blue Jays in front with a two-run single in the fourth.
Springer added an RBI single, but Toronto stranded runners on first and second when Biggio and Guerrero struck out.
Rays outfielder Randy Arozarena walked to begin the fifth and Ramírez followed with his 12th homer.
“We came right back and answered back,” Cash said. “That was nice.”
Ryu allowed two runs and seven hits in three innings in his shortest start of the season.
“My command wasn’t there,” Ryu said through a translator.
Right-hander Shawn Armstrong opened for the Rays, pitching around a pair of walks in his lone inning. Recalled from Triple-A Durham before the game, Criswell followed and allowed four runs, three earned, and four hits in three innings.