Entering the ALCS, the biggest headline was the Seattle Mariners’ exhaustion. On Saturday, they completed the 15-inning Game 5 marathon to enter Toronto at midnight after a 3-hour delayed flight. It had nothing on them as they gave a 3-1 home loss to the Blue Jays on Sunday. Then, after Monday’s 10-3 loss, Toronto combined for only one hit after the second inning in back-to-back games. There can be only so much debate about the manager’s pitching moves.

Schneider’s planned risks went horribly wrong in the Blue Jays’ ALCS. In Game 1, instead of sticking with a hot Kevin Gausman, the GM took him out after 76 pitches and brought in Brendon Little to face Mariners’ Jorge Polanco. Little threw a wild pitch, then switched from his usual knuckle-curve to a four-seam fastball, which he only threw 1% of the time during the regular season. The result? Polanco hit it at 110.7 mph for the go-ahead single.

The next day, instead of Little, Louis Varland was to be blamed.

In Game 2, rookie Trey Yesavage, who also started the game, stayed longer than he should have. So much so that his fastball speed dropped from an average of 95 mph to 92–93 mph in the fourth inning. However, Schneider did not worry about it. He sent Yesavage back to start the next inning. The 22-year-old held down the fort until the fifth inning, but his performance didn’t have its usual bite.

He struck out only four batters in his four-plus innings, and only one after the first. Randy Arozarena began the fifth with an infield single and after an intentional walk to Cal Raleigh. Ultimately, Yesavage was lifted for Louis Varland. But the GM did not mind his decision.

“Looking at his pitch count, I thought he was throwing the ball fine. Kinda just one bad pitch to Julio at first. It’s tough with his left, right, left, right… It’s tough to really just continue to churn through bullpen arms,” Schneider explained The Athletics’ Ken Rosenthal, revealing the impossible position facing managers with inconsistent relief pitching. If the day wasn’t already going bad, it got worse.

The numbers show how badly the Toronto bullpen fell apart. Schneider’s relievers gave up six runs in 8 1/3 innings and couldn’t keep five of nine inherited runners from scoring. The right-hander, Varland, pitched in every postseason game, and you could tell he was tired when Polanco hit a three-run homer that ended Toronto’s hopes in Game 2.

Even normal plays went horribly wrong. Alejandro Kirk lost track of a foul ball that bounced off his mask. He later said it was “the hardest play for him.” J.P. Crawford made the mistake right away, hitting an RBI single on the next pitch to make the score 7-3 for Seattle.

The Mariners looked in charge from the get-go. The Seattle bullpen pitched nine scoreless innings in two games without using any high-leverage arms. The Blue Jays, who had the most regular-season comeback wins in the majors with 49, now need history to help them.

According to Sportsnet Stats, the most recent team to make a comeback after trailing 0-2 in the LCS best-of-seven series was the Diamondbacks in 2023. They defeated the Phillies. The Dodgers, Red Sox, Royals, and Cardinals are also examples of such comebacks.

But there’s one stitch.

No team has ever won in the LCS best-of-seven series after trailing 0-2 at home. But that doesn’t mean it’s not possible. In 2004, the Red Sox beat the Yankees after trailing 0-3. And not like all of Schneider’s decisions raise eyebrows.

During Game 4 of their ALDS matchup against the Yankees, Trey Yesavage was pitching a monster game, throwing a no-hitter with 11 strikeouts. However, the GM pulled him in the 6th inning. While he made this decision after studying the game himself, he also made a mistake following the front office script back in 2023. Then, against the Minnesota Twins, Jose Berrios was on fire in Game 2 of the wild card series. Schneider pulled him too early, and the Twins ended up coming back and winning the series.

Before everything fell apart, Toronto’s George Springer had an impressive individual success. Unfortunately, it only highlights the team’s overall failure.

George Springer makes Blue Jays history, but Toronto still falls apart

George Springer gave Toronto fans something to remember, even though their playoff hopes were dashed. The Blue Jays outfielder hit a home run on the first pitch of Game 1 against Seattle. This was his 21st career playoff home run, which moved him past Derek Jeter in fifth place on the all-time postseason home run list. The swing was like Rickie Henderson’s aggressive style and gave Toronto a boost early on.

But that moment in history didn’t last long.

The Mariners took over after Springer’s hit and never let up. Seattle’s 3-1 win in the first game took the shine off the home run, making it just a footnote in a game Toronto really needed to win. The homer is important because it shows how far Springer has come since the controversial Houston championship in 2017, even though it couldn’t stop the loss.

Springer is still trying to break the record for most playoff homers. He is now behind Bernie Williams’ 22. Manny Ramirez has the most postseason home runs with 29. Jose Altuve is next with 27, and Kyle Schwarber is third with 23. Every October blast brings Springer closer to being immortal.

Still, personal achievements don’t mean anything without the team’s success. The Mariners beat Toronto 10-3 in Game 2, which gave them complete control of the series. Springer’s historic achievement doesn’t mean much when his team is about to be eliminated. It’s just a bright spot in an otherwise terrible performance that has Schneider scrambling for answers. The Blue Jays will now fly to Seattle for Game 3.