Blue Jays’ Many Missed Chances Leave Behind A Heartbroken Team

TORONTO — More than an hr aft his play ended successful a heartbeat and wintertime took hold, Ernie Clement sprawled successful his chair successful nan Blue Jays’ clubhouse, still successful afloat uniform, nursing a Labatt Blue. His sliding shorts featured a spread successful nan correct knee. His eyeblack stickers hardly clung to his cheeks. His eyes brimmed pinch tears. 

He struggled to reckon pinch his loss. Not of Game 7, successful which nan Blue Jays fell 5–4 successful a shocking, back-and-forth, 11th-inning conclusion to nan Dodgers. Not of nan World Series, which they astatine 1 constituent led 3 games to two, and connected Saturday were 2 outs distant from clinching. What wounded most, he realized, was that he wouldn’t get to travel to activity tomorrow. 

“Even if we’d won,” he mused, “I’d still beryllium sad that it was over.”

That was nan connection nan Blue Jays repeated complete and complete successful their quiet clubhouse arsenic Saturday nighttime bled into Sunday morning. 

“Everybody loves each different successful here,” said halfway fielder Daulton Varsho. “We bask being astir this group, and that’s astir apt going to beryllium nan astir hurtful thing.”

That they were truthful adjacent only makes it worse. 

“It took them 7 games to hit us,” said Kevin Gausman, who started Games 1 and 6. “I deliberation if we play tomorrow, we hit ’em, but we’re not playing tomorrow.”

MORE: World Series Game 7 Takeaways: Dodgers’ Wild Comeback Secures Another Title

They had truthful galore chances for a different ending. They loaded nan bases pinch 2 outs successful nan second. They had runners connected first and 2nd pinch 1 retired successful nan fourth, and a runner astatine 3rd pinch nary outs successful nan fifth. They loaded nan bases pinch 1 retired successful nan ninth, and they had runners astatine nan corners pinch 1 retired successful nan 11th. But they could not travel done pinch a deed to put nan Dodgers away, and nan Dodgers clawed backmost pinch solo homers successful nan eighth, disconnected Trey Yesavage, who started Games 1 and 5; ninth, disconnected person Jeff Hoffman; and 11th, disconnected Game 4 starter Shane Bieber. 

“I consciousness for everybody successful here,” said Clement. “We grinded truthful hard. I’d spell to warfare pinch Jeff Hoffman each time of nan week. I want him connected nan mound. I want Biebs connected nan mound. Those are guys who I would return a slug for. And 99 times retired of 100 those guys get nan occupation done. Obviously, this wasn’t our nighttime here. But I consciousness for those guys truthful much.”

Dodgers 2nd baseman Miguel Rojas sent Game 7 to other innings. / Mark Blinch/Getty Images

The halfway has been present for a while, but it took them immoderate clip to turn into a squad that understood its work to its fanbase and to 1 another. A twelvemonth ago, astir nan aforesaid roster vanished 74–88. That nine did not deficiency talent, its members say, but it lacked accountability. 

“We had excessively galore excuses built in,” Bassitt said earlier this week. “We had excessively galore issues internally. We had excessively galore group complaining, including myself, astir nan measurement things were being tally aliases handled and things for illustration that. And arsenic a group, it’s a maturing process. Everyone wrote america off, obviously, aft past year, and rightfully so. I don’t discredit that. But nan reality is that I deliberation we’ve learned a batch from that. We learned that each those stupid things that we were doing aliases saying aliases whatever—it’s not gonna happen. So we [stopped] that this year.” They would walk nan play aft losses making excuses and past trying to do excessively much. They struggled to take an personality aliases an approach. When things went wrong, they panicked. They didn’t cognize who they were.

This twelvemonth they knew: They were an old-school team. They chased innings connected nan mound and interaction astatine nan plate. Their pitchers would return strikeouts erstwhile they could and their hitters were happy to homer, but they tried not to make those outcomes nan attraction of each sheet appearance. They trusted 1 another. They won 94 games and nan American League pennant. 

Even 366 days ago, erstwhile he was handing retired candy successful his neighbor’s driveway while nan Dodgers celebrated their past title, head John Schneider believed that squad could turn into this team. In immoderate ways, that’s what made this group truthful special, and what made nan extremity truthful hard: It was fundamentally nan aforesaid group. 

They made additions, of course, but ever pinch an oculus not conscionable toward talent but besides toward temperament. They signed righty Max Scherzer and outfielder Anthony Santander successful portion because those players are adults who do things nan correct way. 

“It would beryllium easy to benignant of knee-jerk respond to past year,” said Schneider. “I don’t deliberation [general head Ross Atkins] did, I don’t deliberation I did, I don’t deliberation we did. I’m thankful for that. You spot group and you spot that what you’re preparing for is right. Players person to spell do it, and they person answered nan bell.”

Even erstwhile their bodies didn’t want to let them to. Second baseman Bo Bichette sprained his near knee successful early September and spent nan adjacent 7 weeks racing done rehab to get backmost successful time. He knew a further wounded could costs him successful free agency, which he will scope connected Sunday. “It’s nan World Series,” he said earlier Game 6. “None of that worldly really matters.” DH George Springer, 36, took a akin attack erstwhile he wounded his correct broadside connected a plaything during nan 18-inning Game 3 loss; he could hardly walk, and he was still recovering from knee and wrist injuries aft being deed by pitches this month, but he went 5-for-10 successful Games 6 and 7. 

Game 7 starter Max Scherzer, center, gave up 1 tally successful 4 1/3 innings. He’s owed to beryllium a free agent. / Gregory Shamus/Getty Images

After Game 7, Schneider held his first squad gathering of nan year. “I said convey you,” he said. “I said convey you astir apt astir 10 times.” First baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr., nan look of nan franchise, told each teammate individually that he was proud of him.

Bassitt, who will go a free supplier connected Sunday, was asked if he had learned thing from this squad that he hoped to return wherever he ends up. 

“I deliberation it’s difficult to replicate existent love,” he said. As for himself, he said, done tears, “You ne'er know, but I would emotion to person different changeable pinch this group.”

Of course, it won’t beryllium this group. In summation to Bassitt, Bichette and Scherzer will beryllium free agents, and righty Shane Bieber carries a $16 cardinal subordinate option. 

None was judge aft nan crippled what nan early held for them, though Bichette said, “I’ve said I wanted to beryllium present from nan beginning,” and Scherzer said, “There’s nary measurement that was my past pitch.”

This was his seventh awesome convention team, but he said it had meant arsenic overmuch to him arsenic immoderate of them. “Me being 41 years old, I ne'er thought I could emotion shot truthful much,” he said, choking backmost tears. “I’m conscionable truthful proud of everybody. My emotion for nan crippled is truthful beardown because of their emotion for nan game.”

Clement loves nan game, and he loved this team. So arsenic his friends hugged and said goodbye and gathered their belongings, location he sat astatine his locker. He wasn’t judge erstwhile he would ablution and get dressed. He didn’t want to leave. 

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