Kirk the hero as Blue Jays win comeback thriller to open series against Rangers
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Unable to get a sniff off resurgent Texas all-star Jacob deGrom, the Jays seemed destined to lose thanks to a shaky second inning from Chris Bassitt — but catcher Alejandro Kirk and other Jays had something to say about that.
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The Jays finally got to a Texas pitcher when Kirk belted a seventh inning two-run home run over the wall in right-centre off Robert Garcia, the third Rangers hurler of the night. And though ex-Jays all-star Marcus Semien rudely greeted Louis Varland's first pitch with a two-run shot of his own, the American League leaders dug deep for a gritty 6-5 comeback victory.
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The Rangers then made a pitching change, calling on Phil Maton to face Vladimir Guerrero Jr. But Toronto's superstar drew a full-count walk to load the bases, still with no outs. After Addison Barger struck out, Daulton Varsho walked to make it 5-4 and Kirk scored two more with a single.
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Closer Jeff Hoffman then got the crowd roaring again by striking out the first two Rangers in the ninth before erasing the last batter of the game on three pitches to cap the improbable comeback.
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'There's zero quit in these guys,' said manager John Schneider after the game.
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'They kind of look forward to the challenge at this point. It's fun to be a part of, it's fun to watch them operate. And, you know, it's, it's a really, really good atmosphere here.
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'It's loud, man. It's definitely an advantage playing here and it gets louder every night.'
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It was a bit quieter earlier. Despite having baseball's best offence since early May, Toronto's hitters had been struggling so far in August — other than a laugher of a series in mile high Colorado. The Jays only managed two hits and did not draw a walk in five innings against deGrom. Bassitt had actually been a perfect 8-0 at home with a 2.56 ERA, far better than his road numbers, and other than the second inning, when he allowed three hard-hit balls, including the home run by No. 9 hitter Kyle Higashioka, was strong (he only allowed two walks and one hit in his other four innings of work).
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Bassitt echoed Schneider's thoughts about the depth and resolve of the team.
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'It's just no panic, just because it's not really one guy ever doing the job,' Bassitt said. 'Give a lot of credit to a lot more than nine guys on our team that just don't quit.'
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Kirk added the first stolen base of his career for good measure, which had his teammates howling. Guerrero even picked up the base and presented it to Kirk who told us afterward he was going to put it 'definitely in my house.'
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Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account He is, however, one of the reasons why the club sits one win away from matching the entire win total from last season. Saturday against the visiting Texas Rangers, Varsho appeared in his 36th game of the season, which began with Varsho on the injured list following off-season shoulder surgery. Varsho would hurt his hamstring in late May to further compromise his availability. When he has played, it's hard not to notice Varsho. He doesn't have the profile as some of his teammates and fans may never forget the deal that brought Varsho to town from Arizona. The guy can play and he has delivered. Varsho hit his 13th home run in the Jays' 14-2 rout of the Rangers to give him 34 RBI on the season. 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