2025 MLB Playoffs: Blue Jays and Max Scherzer earn another dominant win over Mariners in Game 4 to tie ALCS
SEATTLE — After going down 0-2 in the American League Championship Series, the Toronto Blue Jays are back — and they look completely comfortable on the road.
The Blue Jays evened the series 2-2 on Thursday with an 8-2 victory over the Seattle Mariners in Game 4.
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After beating the Mariners in Game 3, the Blue Jays extended their momentum with another big win at T-Mobile Park. Toronto’s bats stayed hot and a vintage outing from veteran starting pitcher Max Scherzer iced the win.
Thursday’s game quickly looked similar to the night before, as Josh Naylor gave the Mariners an early lead with a solo home run in the second inning, but then a rally in the top of the third gave the Blue Jays a 3-1 lead. For the second straight game, Andrés Giménez started the Jays’ scoring with a two-run homer, leading the Mariners to shut out starter Luis Castillo after just 2 1/3 innings. Toronto added another run in that frame when reliever Gabe Speier walked Daulton Varsho with the bases loaded.
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Seattle’s sloppy pitch gave the Blue Jays another opening in the fourth. George Springer hit an RBI double before driving home on a wild pitch, giving Toronto a 5-1 lead. Meanwhile, the Mariners struggled to get things going on offense.
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On the mound, Scherzer had an exceptional evening. After two walks in the first inning, the 41-year-old starter found his feet, pitching 5 2/3 innings while striking out five on 87 pitches with three hits, two runs and four walks allowed.
Scherzer was so excited that he refused to leave the game until the end of the fifth inning, point-blank telling Blue Jays manager John Schneider “no” in a heated conversation. In the next at-bat, he struck out Randy Arozarena to end the inning, and he returned to start the sixth before finally being relieved.
After the match, Schneider had nothing but positive words for Scherzer, despite the seemingly heated interaction.
“He lives for it. You have to respect that and you have to appreciate it,” Schneider said. “I’ve been waiting for this all year, for Max to yell at me on the mound.
“It was great. I thought he was going to kill me. It was great. He caught my eye, both colors, as I was walking out. That’s not wrong. That’s the problem. It’s not wrong. He’s got that ‘Mad Max’ persona, but he backed it up tonight. The infielders had a good laugh, too, and he got the job done.”
In the sixth, Eugenio Suárez singled to cut the Mariners’ deficit to three, but Vlad Guerrero Jr. hit a solo homer in the next inning. And Giménez added two more in the eighth with a single that scored Myles Straw and Ernie Clement, giving Toronto the lead for the final margin of 8-2.
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It was not the final rout of the third game. But something about Thursday’s loss felt more like a gut punch for the Mariners, as the Blue Jays slowly turned around while Seattle faltered. Much like Game 3, the Seattle crowd became quieter as the game progressed; some of the usual cheers, like chants of “MVP!” » for the Cal Raleigh bats – had fewer and fewer votes by the end of the game.
Even with another crushing loss at home, Mariner manager Dan Wilson remained positive after the game.
“Obviously we wanted to get some wins here in the home series,” he said. “Tomorrow we have a chance to bounce back, and that’s where we’re going to focus.”
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Seattle has one more home game on Friday before things return to Toronto for Game 6 on Sunday. But if this ALCS has proven anything, it’s that there is no such thing as a home-field advantage.
“Baseball. Weird. Who knows,” Schneider said of the road wins. “I can’t really explain it. We like playing at home, and the first two games didn’t go that way, but I like the way we came back here in the last two games, and we have to continue that tomorrow.”
ALCS Game 4 Live Blog
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Kari Anderson
Another solid win ties the series 2-2, with just one game left in Seattle before things turn back to Toronto.
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Kari Anderson
Rodriguez goes for a quick round and slides in for the third takedown. The Blue Jays contested the appeal, but the decision was upheld upon review.
Seattle has another chance at a very improbable victory in the bottom of the ninth, as Seranthony Domínguez takes the mound to close out for Toronto.
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Kari Anderson
Emerson Hancock stays to close things out for the Mariners bullpen and starts by striking out Alejandro Kirk.
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Kari Anderson
Another one-two-three run for Toronto to end the eighth, as Mariners fans begin to file out of the stadium.
The T-Mobile Park team plays “Don’t Stop Believing.” It doesn’t seem to work.
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Kari Anderson
It’s the bottom of the eighth and it’s rally time for the Mariners crowd. Rally caps come out, as do rally towels and occasionally rally shoes.
Down six points, Seattle is running out of chances to get back into the game. If they want to turn things around, it’s now or never.
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Kari Anderson
What a night for Andrés Giménez, who got a big two-run RBI in the eighth inning to almost ice the game for Toronto. He is now 2-for-3, with four RBIs, as the Blue Jays lead 8-2.
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Emerson Hancock is on the mound for the Mariners, who are on their sixth pitcher of the game after Luis Castillo’s short outing.
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Kari Anderson
A great diving catch by Addison Barger in right field ends the inning on a high note for Toronto.
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Kari Anderson
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Kari Anderson
Eduard Bazardo takes the mound for Seattle in the seventh inning, but it’s now 6-2 Toronto after Guerrero blasts another homer to right center for his fifth homer of the playoffs.
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Eugenio Suárez hit a single that sent Jorge Polanco sprinting. Josh Naylor, however, is eliminated third after a courageous slide, and the round comes to an end.
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Max Scherzer, after refusing to come out in the fifth, finally takes his leave after walking Jorge Polanco in the sixth. He finished with five strikeouts on 87 pitches, allowing just three hits and four walks.
Mason Fluharty, a left-handed reliever, replaces Scherzer on the mound.
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Kari Anderson
After sending Blue Jays manager John Schneider back to the dugout, Scherzer closed out the fifth inning with a strikeout. Now he remains on the mound to pitch the sixth, with 74 pitches.
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Kari Anderson
Carlos Vargas relieves Matt Brash to start the sixth, but Addison Barger sends one deep to left center on Vargas’ first pitch to put himself in scoring position.
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Kari Anderson
Seattle finally showed some solidity on defense, with three consecutive outs to end the top of the fifth. Can the Mariners regain some of that momentum at the plate late in the inning?
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Kari Anderson
The official attendance for tonight is 46,981, another sellout for the Mariners.
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Kari Anderson
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Kari Anderson
After a miraculous two-game streak, Humpy loses the Salmon Run after some mild intimidation from the other salmon, who spins Humpy until he is dizzy. Silver ended up winning the race, bringing some normalcy back to a race that saw a sweeping victory last Friday.
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Kari Anderson
George Springer comes in from third on another wild pitch and the Blue Jays take a 5-1 lead.
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Kari Anderson
With George Springer on third base and two outs, Dan Wilson retires Gabe Speier in favor of Matt Brash. Brash gets a closer welcome, with music, flames and a custom graphic – but it’s only round four. This is a worrying sign for Seattle’s bullpen so far.
