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Blue Jays: Game 7 of the ALCS is the most important Toronto baseball game in 32 years

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After two deflating losses at home in the ALCS, the Blue Jays faced an uphill climb to fight back against the Seattle Mariners. The Jays held their own on the road in Games 3 and 4, dropped a controversial Game 5, but stormed back to win Game 6 in Toronto and have forced a Game 7.

May the best team win.

For a while there, it looked like the Blue Jays would go quietly into the night. Game 1 was a close affair with Kevin Gausman on the mound, but Game 2 sped up on the Blue Jays and quickly got out of hand thanks to a trio of long balls by Julio Rodriguez, Jorge Polanco and Josh Naylor.

But it’s always darkest before the dawn. My, how things have changed in the span of one week. Both the Blue Jays and Mariners are one win away from the World Series. One team will face the Los Angeles Dodgers; the other will see its season end just short of the Fall Classic.

For the first time since 1985, the Blue Jays are playing in Game 7 of a playoff series. And this is the most important game for the Blue Jays since Game 6 of the 1993 World Series, nearly 32 years ago.

As magical as the 2015 and 2016 Blue Jays teams were, this 2025 squad has eclipsed those teams by pushing this American League Championship Series to a seventh and deciding game. The Blue Jays are on the doorstep of something truly special after a fantastical regular season and postseason run thus far.

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This 2025 Blue Jays team doesn’t feel the pressure of those 32 years of frustrations, but the fanbase does. It feels like all the close calls and the near misses. The heartbreaking playoff exits and the seasons that never even got a chance to sniff October. The fanbase feels the weight of every single moment as it compounds and becomes heavier and heavier each year.

And one win could lift all that weight.

Looking back, it’s remarkable the Blue Jays are in the postseason, not to mention playing in Game 7 of the ALCS. Nobody expected them to contend for an American League East title, let alone win it. Few outside of Canada expected the Blue Jays to dispatch the Yankees in the ALDS, yet they did.

When it’s down to the final four teams in the LCS, it’s never going to be easy. The Los Angeles Dodgers took care of the Milwaukee Brewers in four straight games, but none of these teams fluked their way here or got here by accident. They deserve to be among the last four teams with a pulse in October.

The fact that the Blue Jays took an early 0-2 deficit in the series, squared it up on the road and tied it once again is a testament to the collective talent on their roster, their sheer will and a little luck, too. This squad has a certain never-say-die attitude, hence their 49 comeback wins during the regular season and a handful more during the playoffs.

Remember, the Blue Jays have been a perennial contender since the 2020 COVID-shortened season. They have been in the playoffs four out of the last five seasons, and one of those years, they were one win away from squeaking into the postseason. Until this year, the Blue Jays had been winless in their last three trips to the playoffs.

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For 22 years, from 1994 to 2014, the benchmark for success was merely making it into the playoffs. But once 2015 came along, the goalposts shifted. This franchise was expected not only to win games in the playoffs but to win series. And as the payroll has steadily crept up over the years, those expectations have risen along with it.

No longer are fanbases “happy to be here”; they expect the team to pop bottles on multiple occasions throughout October. And that dynamic has certainly shifted about the Blue Jays organization; a high-payroll franchise like theirs shouldn’t be pleased with just tasting October baseball. It should be World Series or bust.

One way or another, there will be a lot to celebrate about this 2025 Blue Jays team. Just like the 2015 and 2016 teams before them, this core of players has brought a lot of new Blue Jays fans into the fold. And the Blue Jays have already made so many core memories for the devotees of this franchise. So why not a few more?

The ALCS could be the magnum opus for many of these Blue Jays players, like Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Kevin Gausman, Ernie Clement and Trey Yesavage. Or it could be just the beginning of their narrative.

Outside the white lines, there won’t be a relaxed soul at Rogers Centre tonight for Game 7. Across Canada, there won’t be a Jays fan who isn’t on pins and needles from the first pitch to the final out. But damn it, that’s what makes this game so special.

It wouldn’t feel gratifying if the climb weren’t so arduous. Conversely, it wouldn’t be so agonizing if it were so easy. It’s just baseball, but try telling that to millions upon millions of Blue Jays fans.

It’s all on the line this evening. Winner takes all. Game 7. No pressure. The biggest game in Blue Jays franchise history in 32 years. Why would you want it any other way?

PRESENTED BY 6IX INNING STRETCH PODCAST

Love baseball? Don’t miss The 6ix Inning Stretch — the brand new podcast from The Nation Network, presented by Betway. Hosted by Toronto sports reporter Lindsay Dunn and 3-time MLB All-Star Whit Merrifield, this weekly show delivers insider stories, unfiltered Jays talk, player interviews, and expert analysis from around the majors. New episodes drop every Wednesday — listen on your favourite podcast platform or watch on the Bluejaysnation YouTube channel.