The Toronto Blue Jays' first runs of the World Series came on an unlikely counterpunch.
Down 2-0 in the bottom of the fourth inning, Daulton Varsho smashed a first-pitch fastball from Blake Snell 423 feet to centre to tie the game. It was the first home run that Snell had allowed to a left-handed batter all year.
The dominant left-hander came into the game with a 0.86 ERA, 28 strikeouts and only five walks over 21 innings in the post-season. Snell has won all three of his October starts thus far and last pitched eight innings of one-hit ball in Game 1 of the NLCS against the Milwaukee Brewers, racking up 10 strikeouts.
The last left-handed hitter to homer off Snell was Juan Soto on June 2, 2024, while the all-star outfielder was still with the New York Yankees.
Varsho, meanwhile, has only hit 10 home runs off lefties in his career – six of them coming on the first pitch. The Gold Glove centre fielder also hit a big home run off a left-hander in the final week of the Blue Jays' season, busting the offence out of a slump with a grand slam off Red Sox lefty Justin Wilson.
