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Jays rely on each other to get the job done
TORONTO – After an emotional four-game sweep of the visiting New York Yankees, the Toronto Blue Jays could have easily experienced the old hangover effect.
But instead of a letdown, the Blue Jays (50-38) pulled out a thrilling 4-3 win in 10 innings against the Los Angeles Angels (43-44) to extend their American League East lead to two games as both the Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays lost on Friday.
“I think it would have been easy to have a little bit of a letdown,” Toronto manager John Schneider said after his team expanded its win streak to a season-high six games and highlighted how there have been different players at different times who have stepped up.
“I talk about it a lot that these guys don’t care who it is, and they don’t care how we do it. That is a really good quality to have when you’re playing every single night for 16 straight days like we’re in the middle of.”
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In the series opener against the visiting Angels, Schneider received a strong outing from starter Eric Lauer, aggressive base running and a perfect bunt from Ernie Clement that resulted in the walk-off run.
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Clement laid down a bunt on the third-base side of the mound. Angels reliever Sam Bachman hurried to cross over the mound from the other side to field the bunt. As a result, he rushed his throw high as Clement sped down the line.
This enabled automatic runner Myles Straw to score the winning run from second base.
Earlier, in a three-run sixth inning, George Springer aggressively went from first to third on a Bo Bichette single to left field. Springer then scored on shortstop Zach Neto’s throwing error on a bouncer up the middle from Addison Barger.
“You need to have everything like we had tonight,” Schneider said.
The Blue Jays reached 50 wins in their 88th game, a feat they haven’t accomplished since 1992 when they went on to win the first of back-to-back World Series titles.
Clement believes the closeness of the Blue Jays players and coaching staff has transferred into their 34-18 run since May 8. Only the Houston Astros have been better during this stretch with a 35-17 clip.
“We just keep relying on each other,” Clement said. “It’s all about relying on each other and picking each other up.”
Bichette returned to the lineup on Friday after being limited to one pinch-hit appearance in the Yankees series because of a sore knee.
But Vladimir Guerrero Jr. sat out Friday’s game before 30,119 at Rogers Centre after fouling off a pitch on his right foot in the sixth inning of the series finale against the Yankees on Thursday.
Meanwhile, Lauer didn’t register the win after Jo Adell greeted Toronto reliever Nick Sandlin with a three-run homer in the seventh inning. But the lefty did check in with his first quality start since April 19, 2023, when he pitched for the Milwaukee Brewers.
“Winning is fun,” the 30-year-old Lauer said. “Like I said before we never feel we’re out of a game. Good things happen when you put the ball in play.”
Good things are happening to the Blue Jays at home, too. The win Friday improved their record at Rogers Centre to 30-16, third-best in the American League behind the Astros (32-14) and the Detroit Tigers (30-14).
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 4, 2025.
© 2025 The Canadian Press
TORONTO – Blue Jays slugger George Springer has been cleared to return to game action after suffering a concussion over two weeks ago, Toronto manager John Schneider said Wednesday.
The 35-year-old outfielder/designated hitter hasn’t played since July 28 when he was hit in the helmet by a fastball thrown by Baltimore Orioles pitcher Kade Strowd.
Springer, who was on hand for batting practice before Toronto’s game against the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday night, was expected to play for the Triple-A Buffalo Bisons on Thursday.
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“Play DH tomorrow and then see if he needs a game in the outfield to see how he feels,” Schneider said in his pre-game availability. “But he’ll be doing that tomorrow.”
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Springer has been one of the top offensive performers this season for the Blue Jays (70-50), who had a 4 1/2-game lead on the Boston Red Sox in the American League East standings entering play Wednesday.
Over 101 games, Springer has a .291 average, 18 homers, 57 RBIs and an on-base and slugging percentage of .889.
Strowd’s 96-m.p.h. pitch appeared to hit Springer’s shoulder before making contact with his helmet near the ear flap. After laying prone for a moment or two, Springer got up slowly and left the field with some assistance.
He was placed on the seven-day concussion injured list on July 29.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 13, 2025.
© 2025 The Canadian Press
Two delightfully shaggy new faces will be on display at the Toronto Zoo starting on Friday.
The nine-month-old brothers are Scottish Highland cattle, with long, woolly, reddish coats and fringe over their eyes.
The zoo’s manager of wildlife care, Marc Brandson, says the two were born and raised at a local Ontario farm before moving to the zoo about a month ago.
He says they completed a quarantine period and now live just outside the Eurasia Wilds area of the zoo.
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Membership holders can visit the brothers at a pre-screening on Thursday, while other visitors can see them starting Friday.
Brandson says there is “a lot of excitement” around the pair because of how popular the Highland breed already is.
He says the zoo is hoping to have the brothers walk through the public area of the zoo as part of its animal ambassador program, which can give visitors a closer look at certain animals.
“Each and every day, our outreach and discovery staff are working to get them to that level,” he said.
“Having a bonded pair is a really great social situation for Highland cows. These brothers are very calm and they are gaining confidence each and every day that they interact with their caregivers.”
The brothers don’t have names yet, and Brandson says the public should stay tuned on ways to contribute naming ideas.
© 2025 The Canadian Press
Conservative MP Michelle Rempel Garner says the federal government needs to do more to fight Canada’s devastating forest fires.
Speaking to reporters Wednesday in Ottawa, the Alberta MP accused Ottawa of “inaction” on wildfires. She also blamed that lack of action for new measures restricting activities in the forests of two provinces — even though those bans were imposed by the provinces themselves.
Nova Scotia and New Brunswick last week banned hiking, fishing, camping and the use of vehicles in its forests in response to the heightened wildfire risk.
Rempel Garner said that while she understands the fear Maritimers feel, restricting individuals’ movements is “not right.”
“Whenever there’s a major crisis, what the Liberal government has done by their inaction has conditioned Canadians to expect that the only response they can see out of their federal government is to restrict their movement,” Rempel Garner told reporters.
“We’re calling on the federal government to actually get serious about this issue.”
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Conservative MP Marc Dalton presented a bill last year to stiffen penalties for wildfires caused by arson. It never made it past first reading and died when Parliament was dissolved ahead of this year’s election.
Rempel Garner said that’s one area where the Liberals could have taken action on wildfires. She also called on the federal government to dedicate more resources to wildfire control.
In its 2021 election platform, the Liberals promised to train 1,000 community-based firefighters to fight wildfires and to work with provinces and territories to get them more firefighting planes.
Last month, Ontario Premier Doug Ford told reporters that Alberta-based water bomber manufacturer De Havilland was facing a four-year backlog of orders.
“Four full wildfire seasons ago, the Liberals promised more water bombers, more firefighters,” Rempel Garner said. “Where are they?”
Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston brushed off the criticisms of the forest entry ban at a press conference later Wednesday.
“I find it remarkable, the interest in travelling in Nova Scotia woods by people who aren’t in Nova Scotia and probably haven’t been here much in their life,” Houston told reporters.
“We’re only concerned with keeping people safe. We’ll do what’s necessary to protect lives, and that’s what we’re doing in this case.”
So far this season, the total area of the country burned by wildfires is nearly the size of the entire province of New Brunswick.
— With files from Sarah Ritchie.
© 2025 The Canadian Press
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