The Blue Jays desperately needed to pick up a win on Sunday in their game against the Los Angeles Dodgers, and despite it looking like things were destined to end in disappointment, an unlikely hero came in late to save the day.
After taking a 5-4 lead and heading into the bottom of the ninth inning with their closer on the hill, the Blue Jays looked like they might be able to avoid a sweep at the hands of the mighty Dodgers, who had beaten them handily on both Friday and Saturday. However, closer Jeff Hoffman was not at his best on Sunday, and unfortunately, he continued a trend that had been plaguing the pitching staff throughout the day. In just 2/3 of an inning, Hoffman walked five batters, increasing the team total for 13 on the day. Yes, you read that right. Hoffman walked five, starting pitcher Eric Lauer handed out four free passes, Yariel Rodriguez had added two more, and both Seranthony Dominguez and Brayden Fisher had one apiece as well. It was anything but an efficient outing for the pitching staff.
After Hoffman’s implosion left the bases loaded, manager John Schneider didn’t have many options left, and he turned to an unlikely source against one of the best hitters in baseball. Left-hander Mason Fluharty came into a one-run game with the bases loaded and had to face Shohei Ohtani. Pretty much the most difficult situation you could draw up for the former fifth-round pick looking for his first career save.
And he owned the moment like a boss.
While watching the game, I sent a text to a friend that something along the lines of, “Well, this just feels like a cruel setup to throw at the kid”. I admit, I assumed the worst was about to happen, and that Ohtani would find a way to at least tie the game, if not end it with one swing. Instead, Fluharty had him off balance for the entire at-bat, never letting the two-way phenom get comfortable in the batter’s box. Replays tell us that he should have struck out Ohtani several pitches earlier than he eventually did, as there was a missed check swing call early in the at-bat that even had the Dodgers’ play callers reeling.
I just said the same in a baseball chat with some friends.
That AB against Ohtani will be something his grandkids watch on YouTube. #BlueJays https://t.co/iIGfFe9xbc
— Chris Henderson (@Baseball4Brains) August 10, 2025
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Instead of folding under pressure and a call that went against him, Fluharty continued to attack, and Ohtani battled despite looking off balance. On the 9th pitch of the at-bat, Fluharty finished off the multi-MVP Award winner on a gutsy breaking ball that would have been ball four had Ohtani been able to lay off.
The job wasn’t done, and thankfully, Fluharty managed to get Mookie Betts to ground out to end the game just a few pitches later, but the strikeout against Ohtani felt like the nail in the coffin for the Dodgers on Sunday, and an unlikely hero saved the day for the Blue Jays.
“No thinking, no thinking. Just go out there and do it,” said Fluharty, speaking to reporters postgame. “I was super excited, super pumped. I honestly blacked out. I have no idea what happened out there. I just trusted my pitches, attacked guys. That’s all you can do… I feel like I really can believe in myself; it gives me the confidence to just go be me. And not think. Moving forward, just keeping the same mentality. Going out there and blacking out every time, hopefully.”
This was no routine save for the 23-year-old, though. It’s hard to say what Fluharty’s career is going to look like going forward, or how long he’ll be a big leaguer. Being a reliever means living in a volatile world where things can change quickly, and few have long-lasting careers consistently making a living in a big league bullpen. This may be the first season of a 15-year career at the highest level for the southpaw, or who knows, maybe it was the pinnacle moment of his time in Major League Baseball.
Mason Fluharty wins the 9-pitch battle against Ohtani 😮 pic.twitter.com/ccJh01RZWu
— MLB (@MLB) August 10, 2025
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What I know for sure is that this was a career-defining moment for Fluharty and a win that could have massive implications for the Blue Jays in this year’s playoff race. As of this writing on Sunday evening, the Jays are 69-50 and hold a 4.0 game lead over the Red Sox in the AL East, followed by the Yankees, who are 6.5 games back. That extra win may matter at the end of the regular season, but more importantly, it was also a tone setter as the Blue Jays look ahead to the stretch run. Avoiding a sweep at the hands of the mighty Dodgers matters for momentum and confidence. They’re the defending champions for a reason, and the Jays are going to have to beat the best to reach their ultimate goals.
And on Sunday, Fluharty not only beat the best, he did so in the most pressure-packed situation of his young career.