CHICAGO — During the eighth inning of Saturday’s contest at Wrigley Field, the Toronto Blue Jays took complete control of the historic ballpark.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. ripped a game-tying single off Chicago Cubs reliever Jacob Webb that brought a loud "Let's Go Blue Jays," chant from the large swath of supporters who’d made to trek to the North Side.
Myles Straw noticed the chants even while he was locked into what was happening on the field.
“I mean, that's momentum,” Straw said. “I feel like the pitcher feels it. The Cubs hear it. We feel good about it.”
Kazuma Okamoto took the baton and proceeded to send the Blue Jays fans into a frenzy by launching a go-ahead, three-run homer. Okamoto watched the ball leave the yard and then pointed to his teammates in the visitors’ dugout as he touched first base and celebrated the turning point of what was a dramatic, comeback 8-6 win over the Cubs in front of 40,706.
“I was just praying for the ball to go over the fence there,” Okamoto said through interpreter Yusuke Oshima.
“Honestly, off the bat, I didn't get too excited too early because I know Chicago is kind of weird with balls in the wind and everything,” said Straw. “But, I mean, when it went out, we were fired up.
“That was probably one of the biggest swings of the season so far.”
The Blue Jays suffered a 16-2 beatdown by the Cubs on Friday and were trailing 5-0 on Saturday as Chicago built a lead with a three-run homer from Matt Shaw off starter Patrick Corbin and Pete Crow-Armstrong’s two-run shot off Lazaro Estrada.
However, Daulton Varsho belted a three-run shot in the seventh that cut into the Cubs' lead and Straw started the eighth-inning rally with a walk. George Springer and pinch-hitter Alejandro Kirk singled before Guerrero Jr. added his game-tying knock.
“His at bats were pretty good today,” said Blue Jays manager John Schneider of the struggling first baseman. “I thought he was on time and he took some good swings. For a guy that's been grinding, it's nice to come through there and tie the game.”
Added Okamoto: “Everyone was grinding and passing the baton.”
The win wasn't without more dramatics, though. Mason Fluharty loaded the bases with none out in the bottom of the inning, prompting Schneider to bring in Louis Varland to face the heart of the Cubs order.
The right-hander promptly induced a grounder from Nico Hoerner, struck out Seiya Suzuki and got Michael Busch to fly out to left field to end the threat. Varland also tossed a scoreless ninth inning to secure the Blue Jays’ victory, helping the club improve to 38-39.
“One pitch at a time,” Varland said of his mentality entering the bases-loaded jam.
“It's a tough ask,” Schneider said. “All I told him was, ‘Hey, we still got a three-run lead, just make pitches.’ And Louis doesn't budge, man. Limiting the damage there with the ground ball and then the strikeout. He's been everything we could have asked for and more.”
The eventful eighth inning shone a light on perhaps the Blue Jays’ two best players this season. Okamoto’s homer was his 16th of the campaign and while Toronto as a team has hit just 77 this season, that means Okamoto represents 20 per cent of the club’s power output. His slug has been essential for the Blue Jays and it begs the question where would the team be without his bat?
The same can be said for Varland, who’s been arguably MLB’s best reliever in 2026. He’s collected 15 saves and has allowed just four earned runs over 42 innings to produce a microscopic 0.86 ERA.
“One of the best pitchers, best closers in the game,” Corbin said. “You just feel every time he gets the ball, he's going to get the job done.”
Varland has pitched more than one inning on 12 occasions this season and said in order to adjust, he’s tapered off some of his throwing between outings.
“I learned a lot from last year, probably overthrew a little bit outside of the game,” said Varland. “So, I made some adjustments here and there in pretty much all aspects. Less is more type of mentality but still checking the boxes in what I need.”
As for the intensity at Wrigley during the pressure-packed eighth? Varland wasn’t bothered and probably couldn’t even tell that there were “Let’s Go Blue Jays” chants.
“I mean, I played in the World Series and nothing tops that,” he said. “Although it was similar — the crowd was loud but I kinda get tunnel vision and kind of blacked out.”
