Lining up against the league’s most loaded roster, early pressure was the all-important answer for the Blue Jays. The predictions weren’t on their side, but Toronto started on a steady front. They struck out the best hitters, loaded the bases, and ran up Blake Snell’s pitch count. But that was just the first inning.

After letting the Dodgers string together perfect singles for a 1-0 lead, Ernie Clement took a calculated risk, only to watch it backfire.

With two outs in the second inning, hitter George Springer tapped a ground ball on the infield and reached the base safely. In response, Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman attempted a throw at second to get Clement, but he was already running to third. Moments later, Max Muncy tagged him out to end the inning.

If Clement had stayed, it would have brought Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to the plate with men on 2nd and 3rd. And with the form the 26-year-old is in, you can only guess the outcome (his six home runs were the most by any Blue Jay ever in the postseason). But Clement’s risk cost the Blue Jays an opportunity to either tie the score or, better yet, take a lead.

It may have been just the second inning, but for Toronto fans who have waited 32 years for a win in the World Series, that’s a behemoth of an opponent that spares no margin for error.

Despite entering the series with a home-field advantage and leading the league in offense with  6½ runs a game (nearly two more than the Dodgers), the Blue Jays were considered the underdogs. That’s the scale LA has been operating at.

Dave Roberts and team, before posting a 9-1 record this postseason, have outplayed Toronto 2-1 this regular season, while Snell has thrown five scoreless innings in the same stretch. Add to that the rest of the formidable quartet of Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tyler Glasnow, and Shohei Ohtani, alongside an experienced postseason manager, and you have got fans going off on social media.

What adds to the frustration is that Clement has been ‘the man’ for the Blue Jays this postseason. The super utility player has recorded 18 postseason hits in his first 11 postseason games, a milestone no one has reached before.

If the Blue Jays lose this one, Blake Snell might just send him a thank-you card, and fans, they have already reached peak emotions.

Update: The Blue Jays ended with a sixth inning for the history books. After forcing Snell out of the game on loaded bases, Toronto capitalized on the bullpen with a nine-run frame that sent them to an 11-4 victory. The highlight reel was, of course, the pinch hit grand slam — the first ever in the history of World Series — delivered by Addison Barger.

Clement, on the other hand, contributed an RBI single in the stretch and finished the evening 2-for-4. During the second inning, though, hardly anyone seemed ready to forgive the 29-year-old.

Blue Jays fans question Ernie Clement after base-running disaster

The Toronto Blue Jays have made chaos look like a game plan this postseason. But even for a team that thrives on drama, what unfolded tonight had fans rubbing their eyes. In a moment that was supposed to build momentum, Ernie Clement became the unexpected headline. And now, Blue Jays fans aren’t debating stats or strategy, they’re asking one simple question: What was he thinking?

“Wtf is Ernie Clement doing?” pretty much sums up the mood across Blue Jays Nation tonight. Making the third out at third in the World Series is the kind of chaos they invent. It brings back memories of 2023, when Vladimir Guerrero Jr. got picked off at second in Minnesota, killing a rally and a season. Once again, Toronto proves its biggest opponent might just be itself in October.

“Absolutely brutal base running from Ernie Clement costs the Jays a scoring chance,” says it all. It’s the kind of blunder that flips momentum faster than a double play in October. Reminds you of 2017, when the Cubs’ Javier Báez got caught between bases in the NLCS, killing a rally against the Dodgers. Just like that night, one bad read turned potential magic into another postseason facepalm moment.

“Ernie Clement just ran the Blue Jays out of the inning and bailed the Dodgers out” might be the most accurate take of the night. Blake Snell and Freddie Freeman looked rattled, but Clement’s misfire handed them an easy escape. Instead of Guerrero Jr. stepping up with runners in scoring position, Toronto walked straight into disappointment.

One fan even gave the idea of a punishment. “Coach should make Clement run poles.” That third-out sprint to disaster deserves some cardio-inspired reflection under the outfield lights tomorrow. Because if Clement’s going to run, better it be around the warning track, not into outs.

Ernie Clement’s baserunning blunder in the World Series has fans questioning his awareness. “Ernie Clement: I’ve never been to a World Series before. Watch me make the stupidest baserunning mistake possible,” they quip. Drafted in 2017, Clement made his MLB debut in 2021 and is now in his fifth season. This is his first World Series appearance, and such mistakes can cost the team dearly.

Ernie Clement’s baserunning tonight proves even seasoned Blue Jays players can implode under pressure. When Guerrero Jr. waits in scoring position, mistakes like Clement’s transform opportunity into instant regret.