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Instant Reaction: The bats woke up, as the Blue Jays won their first series since April 21

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For the first time since April 21, the Blue Jays walked away with a series win.

On Wednesday evening, the Toronto Blue Jays hosted the rubber match against the Chicago White Sox, defeating the basement dwelling team 9-2, which brings their record to 9-2.

The Blue Jays took the lead in the bottom of the second, scoring seven runs. The first came on a Davis Schneider single, which scored Justin Turner and Alejandro Kirk.

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Following Schneider was Daulton Varsho, who hit his first triple of the season that scored Varsho and Kevin Kiermaier, making it a 4-0 game and scoring all the runs Toronto needed.

But that didn’t stop them from piling on, as Bo Bichette hit a three-run bomb after Vladimir Guerrero Jr. reached with a single. This home run also marked the return of the home run jacket, which in reality, should have never been gone.

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Toronto added a few more runs in the bottom of the fourth, as Bo Bichette hit a single that drove in two thanks to an error from centre fielder Dominic Fletcher, giving the team nine runs.

The White Sox would get two runs back in the top of the eighth, as Tommy Pham hit a lead off home run off Génesis Cabrera, before a fielding error and a Paul DeJong sac fly led to an unearned run against Cabrera. Still, the Blue Jays finally won a series!

Things worth mentioning…

Chris Bassitt was a big part of Toronto’s success on Wednesday, as he finished with a line of 7 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 4 K. Like last season, it’s been a bit of a rough start for Bassitt, but he dropped his ERA from 5.03 to 4.39 in just one start. Let’s hope this is the turnaround for him.

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Nate Pearson finished the game striking out two and walking one, while Génesis Cabrera allowed a home run and an unearned run. The Jays were able to save their bullpen though, which is great heading into a four-game series against Detroit. Their next off-day is next Thursday, so more outings like this is good.

The Blue Jays bats seemingly woke up this series, as they scored a total of 18 runs in three games, with one game being shutout with just two hits. Bo Bichette was once again the Jays best hitter, hitting a home run and a single, while Isiah Kiner-Falefa also had a multi-hit game. Every starter except Justin Turner had a hit, but Turner also walked three times.

Toronto is now 1-0 with the home run jacket. Does it matter? Probably not, but allowing players to have fun and hit bombs should be the direction of this team after a pretty brutal 2023 campaign of “singles first” offence. Maybe, just maybe, the bats will get a spark from the jacket.

Up next: The Jays fly to Detroit to face the Tigers in a four-game series. The first game will be at 6:40 PM, with Kevin Gausman taking the mound against Jack Flaherty. After a great start to their season, the Tigers now sit at 23-26.

As always, you can follow me on Twitter @Ryley_L_D.