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Vladimir Guerrero Jr. said all the right things, struck all the right chords and admitted to feeling relieved once his mega 14-year, $500-million US deal became official in the hours leading up to first pitch Wednesday night at Fenway Park.
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A small gathering of reporters huddled with Vlad Jr. in Boston.
The scene will be much different Monday in Toronto.
In his first plate appearance against the Red Sox, Vlad Jr. stroked a single and came around to score on a Will Wagner groundout.
The Jays started Vlad Jr. at DH and he would record his first three-hit game of the season.
Game 3 of a four-game series turned into arguably the game of the Jays’ young season, an extra-inning thriller Toronto would take, 2-1, as it eyes a sweep.
Here are three takeaways from a night Kevin Gausman struck out 10 and did not yield a single walk, while all six of Toronto’s hits were singles
1. Follow the money
The two have been joined at the hip, have moved up the system together and were viewed as the franchise cornerstone pieces.
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With Vlad Jr. officially signed to a career contract, the attention shifts to Bo Bichette.
On the surface, any negotiation to sign the pending free agent has its perils given Bichette’s injury-prone 2024 season.
Once again, he was slotted in the leadoff hole when his ideal slot is in the No. 2 hole, much like Vlad Jr.’s best role is in the No. 3 hole. Bichette began the game by taking the opening pitch and grounding out to short.
The Jays made a seismic and franchise-defining decision to lock up Vlad Jr. for 14 years.
Until last season, Bichette was just as popular and just as proficient at the plate. Whether he stays or whether he goes remains to be seen.
What’s obvious is the Jays could make another emphatic statement if they can sign Bichette to a long-team deal. He drove in the winning run on a sac fly in the 11th inning.
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2. Pitching in
When it comes to early season surprises, George Springer is at the top of the list or at worst close to the top.
Springer was not in the starting lineup in the third game of a four-game series.
As a group, Toronto’s starting pitching has been the best, even with veteran Max Scherzer sidelined (thumb) following his three-inning debut at Rogers Centre.
In his absence, Easton Lucas has made quite the impression.
Gausman brought a 1-1 record into Wednesday’s start, fresh off his performance against the New York Mets, where he did not record a single strikeout, a rarity for someone accustomed to racking up Ks.
Gausman struck out Rafael Devers swinging in the first inning and was the beneficiary of a great run-saving catch by Nathan Lukes in deep centre after the Jays staked the veteran right-hander to a 1-0 lead.
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Through four innings, Gausman had registered six strikeouts.
His eighth punchout capped off a stretch that would see Gausman strike out five in succession.
Gausman led off the sixth inning by recording strikeout No. 9 followed by his 10th.
It was vintage Gausman in going eight complete innings.
3. Speed kills
The Jays haven’t exactly been known for their speed and ability to steal bases.
Andres Gimenez has been a defensive pillar at second and has shown an ability to go deep.
He has also shown his speed.
No one can question his aggressiveness, but he did run into a double play on a straight steal sequence after reaching base on a single.
Gimenez got a good jump and ran hard toward second base. Problem was he had no chance of picking up the ball after Wagner sent a liner into right field that would be caught.
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Gimenez recorded at least one hit in his first seven games and then endured a stretch of five games where he had a combined one hit.
No Jay has hit more home runs (3), no Jay has stolen more bases (3) than Gimenez, whose acquisition from Cleveland has not received the kind of attention it deserves.
He reached base three times.
Up Next
Tantalizing pitching duel pitting Chris Bassitt and his stellar 0.71 ERA versus Walker Buehler, who tossed the final pitch of last year’s World Series; Boston signed the former Dodgers right-hander to a one-year $21.5 million deal; first pitch in the series finale is 4:10 p.m. before Toronto heads to Baltimore to open a weekend series against the Orioles.
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