The Toronto Blue Jays won Game 4 of the American League Championship Series Thursday night, 8-2, in Seattle. That evens the best-of-seven series at two games apiece and guarantees that this thing will be headed back to Toronto for at least a Game 6. We won't know if there will be a Game 7 until the conclusion of Game 6. That kind of drama is what it's all about.
Here's what you need to know from Game 4.
Mad Max steps up
Blue Jays starter Max Scherzer was not very good down the stretch in the regular season. He had a 9.00 ERA in his last five starts and a 10.20 ERA in September. He hadn't pitched in a game since Sept. 24 and wasn't even on the Blue Jays' ALDS roster. He's 41 years old.
And he went out Thursday and showed flashes of vintage Mad Max. Sure, he doesn't have the physical set of tools Prime Scherzer did -- few ever have -- but he gutted through it and provided the Jays with 5 ⅔ innings of strong work, allowing two runs on three hits. He struck out five.
Max Scherzer turns back the clock in ALCS Game 4, just when the Blue Jays needed him the most
Matt Snyder
Blue Jays bats still alive
What a backwards series for the Blue Jays' offense. The Mariners' pitching situation was in total disarray for Game 1 and Jays leadoff man George Springer started things off with a first-inning homer. They didn't score again that night, losing 3-1. In Game 2, the Mariners still weren't fully recovered from ALDS Game 5 and were forced to run starter Logan Gilbert out on short rest. The Jays only scored three runs in a blowout loss.
Now, over in Seattle -- generally a pitcher's paradise -- the Mariners had a fully rested and stocked pitching staff. And the Blue Jays battered them for 13 runs in Game 3. There were only 15 runs combined in three ALDS games -- and 35 innings. That's 70 at-bats. The Jays scored 13 in nine at-bats in Game 3.
It wasn't quite that absurd in Game 4, but the Blue Jays still chased Mariners starter Luis Castillo from the game after just 2 ⅓ innings. They pounded out 10 hits, including two home runs.
Speaking of, make sure to give shortstop Andrés Giménez his due. He only hit seven home runs in the regular season with a paltry .313 slugging percentage. He hit a two-run home run that turned the tide in Game 3. He did it again in Game 4. He also came through with a two-RBI single Thursday. That's six RBI in two games in an oppressive park after he only had 35 RBI in 101 games in the regular season.
Oh, and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. also homered. Again.
That's five so far in eight games in the 2025 playoffs.
Every road team has won so far
It's probably far too early to point this out, but I can't help it. Prior to the 2019 season, there had never been a seven-game series in which the road team won all seven games. The Astros and Nationals pulled it off that season, with Scherzer's Nats taking the series with a Game 7 win in Houston. It happened again just four years later and the Astros were, again, the losing team. This time it was the Astros winning Games 3-5 in Arlington while the Rangers won Games 1-2 and 6-7 in Houston.
Fast-forward to the 2025 ALCS. The Mariners won two games in Toronto and now the Blue Jays have answered with two wins in Seattle.
How weird is this one?
The Blue Jays had the second-best home record in baseball in the regular season and went 2-0 at home in the ALDS. Before this series, they were 56-27 at home and 41-42 on the road.
The Mariners had the sixth-best home record in baseball at 51-30 while they were 39-42 on the road in the regular season.
It's the bizarro ALCS.
Next up: Game 5 on Friday
It's a quick turnaround for both teams, as not only is Game 5 on Friday, but it's a day game. It starts at 6:08 p.m. ET, which is, of course, just after 3 o'clock local time. Give them all a half day, Seattle businesses. The Mariners have never been to the World Series. This is now the biggest game in franchise history! Until Game 6, at least.
The Mariners have announced Bryce Miller as the starting pitcher and he was great in Game 1 after a bad regular season. Bryan Woo, still recovering from the injury that kept him off the ALDS roster, is available in relief.
The Blue Jays counter with Game 1 starter Kevin Gausman. He threw five scoreless innings in Game 1 before coughing up two runs in the sixth and taking the loss.
