TORONTO – The Toronto Blue Jays were once again mounting a late comeback on Wednesday night with Andres Gimenez and Nathan Lukes hitting RBI singles in the eighth inning to tie up a game with the Houston Astros 2-2.
Toronto closer Jeff Hoffman came on in the ninth, looking to slam the door on Houston’s hitters and setup a walkoff opportunity for his Blue Jays teammates or force extra innings.
But then Astros catcher Yainer Diaz got a piece of a 94.7 m.p.h. four-seam fastball from Hoffman, launching it 385 feet to left-centre field. The Blue Jays batters couldn’t score in the bottom of the inning and Toronto lost 3-2.
“He’s got good stuff, I still trust him,” said manager John Schneider after the loss. “He’s been throwing the ball really well, and one bad pitch tonight.”
That pitch was inside on Diaz — Schneider said that was the strategy for all of his pitchers against the Houston catcher — but apparently wasn’t tight enough on the right-handed hitter’s hands.
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“I feel like a broken record, but it’s just one bad pitch,” said Schneider. “”I feel like they go hand-in-hand with Hoff. It’s the home runs that are obviously going to hurt you.
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“We’re trying to go in on Diaz all night and (the pitch) was middle-middle. I think the difference between when he’s really good and when he has a rough outing, that’s it, you know? It’s just the damage right there.”
Hoffman allowed nine home runs over 118 2/3 innings for the Philadelphia Phillies in 2023 and 2024, then signed a three-year, US$33 million contract with Toronto on Jan. 10.
He has now given up 15 home runs in 62 1/3 innings this season.
“I think teams prepare a little bit differently for a quote-unquote closer,” said Schneider. “What we’ve been looking at in particular is the pitch deployment and when you’re throwing what pitch and what counts.
“He’s got three different weapons that are really good, and I think just trying to use them all appropriately is where the damage has come a little bit.”
Starting pitcher Jose Berrios allowed two runs on five hits and a walk over 5 1/3 innings of work for the Blue Jays. He struck out four and was pulled after giving up a solo home run to Astros third baseman Carlos Correa on his 81st pitch of the night.
Berrios said he would have preferred to see Toronto complete its comeback but that he was proud of his teammates nonetheless.
“I think we have been showing that all year long,” he said outside the Blue Jays locker-room at Rogers Centre. “Every player in that clubhouse is contributing to the team.
“It’s fun to watch. We right together until the last out.”
Despite Toronto’s loss, the Blue Jays maintained their three-game lead in the AL East because the New York Yankees lost to the Detroit Tigers 11-1 and the Boston Red Sox fell to the Athletics 5-4.
Detroit (84-62) moved a half game ahead of Toronto (83-62) for the best record in the American League, however.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 10, 2025.
© 2025 The Canadian Press
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