Wild 5-run frame, rookie backstop spark big series win for Blue Jays

TORONTO -- Forget the flaws, any series won in the American League East is a good weekend of baseball.

Sunday’s 6-4 win over the Orioles moves the Blue Jays to 32-34, another win towards .500 for a club that’s been stuck just a few games below it seemingly all season long.

This is what mattered most from the win:

1. One wild inning

While the O’s did their damage with big blows, the Blue Jays did theirs with a flurry of jabs. Parts of it mirrored the 2025 team’s success, when every corner of the lineup was contributing.

The Blue Jays also benefited from a controversial call in that sixth inning. On a ground ball to shortstop Gunnar Henderson, who’d cut across the bag at second, Ernie Clement changed his running path to get around Henderson, who then threw to first instead of trying for the inning-ending double play. Orioles manager Craig Albernaz ran out to argue the call -- along with his entire infield -- believing that Clement should have been called out for leaving the baseline. The inning continued, though, and the Blue Jays piled on four more runs with two outs.

“The runner gets to create their own lane. I guess I created it early enough to where it wasn’t out of the basepath,” Clement said. “He didn’t really make an attempt to tag me. It’s really umpire discretion. I think you’ve got to try to not get tagged in that situation and stay out of the double play. That’s all I was trying to do, just get to second base.”

The Blue Jays are still looking for their real offensive spark, which needs to come from Vladimir Guerrero Jr., the face of this franchise. They need George Springer, too, arguably the MVP of the 2025 team, who hasn’t recaptured that magic. In the meantime, innings like this one are crucial to keeping the Blue Jays afloat.

2. Gausman hits a wall

The first four innings were vintage Kevin Gausman: smooth, steady and in full control. Then, the fifth inning happened.

Gausman continues to be tempted by his slider, which has given him a mix of optimism and headaches this year. Colton Cowser’s home run in the fifth came off that slider, though, and the pitch has been hit hard lately despite some encouraging moments in between. He throws the pitch just under 10% of the time, and it’s been that way for the past few seasons, but it still seems to represent the tipping point between Gausman’s good days and bad days recently.

A pair of two-out extra-base hits followed by another home run made a mess of the inning, quickly flipping a 0-0 tie into another steep hill for the Blue Jays to climb.

It’s these moments that best frame the difference between the 2025 Blue Jays and the ‘26 squad. Last season, it felt easier to believe in the Blue Jays as the comeback kids. They built an entire identity around it, constantly clawing their way back into these games. So far this season, these deficits in the middle innings feel more daunting.

Gausman was bailed out by the Blue Jays’ offense this time, though, bringing back shades of this team’s best days a year ago.

“With this group, you never feel like you’re completely out of it,” Gausman said. “It was just a matter of time.”

3. Play of the game: Brandon Valenzuela

The rookie catcher just keeps impressing. His defense has long been good enough for the big leagues, and he’s quickly proving that his bat is ready, too, but plays like the one he made in the seventh inning Sunday show a “feel” that’s needed to thrive in the Major Leagues.

With runners on first and second with no outs, Blaze Alexander dropped a bunt, hoping to advance the runners and get the tying run to third. Instead, Valenzuela leapt out from behind home plate and fired to Kazuma Okamoto at third to get the forceout.

“He’s calm. He knows his routine he has to do to get ready for the game and goes about his business quietly,” Gausman said. “It seems like he’s slowed the game down the last couple of weeks. It’s been fun to watch him get better and better.”

It was bold and decisive, fully capturing the confidence Valenzuela plays with. Tyler Rogers eventually came in to tidy up the inning, but Valenzuela’s play was the starring moment and yet another loud statement in his case to stick around.