Blue Jays' Alejandro Kirk clutch for Toronto 'I needed it. the team needed it'

Opportunity hasn't been Alejandro Kirk's problem. The Toronto Blue Jays' catcher has walked to the plate 27 times this season with a runner in scoring position, constantly a swing away from igniting an offense that badly needs a spark.

Taking advantage of those chances has been the hard part. A month after signing a five-year, $58 million extension, Kirk entered Friday with just five RBIs in the exact situations built for cashing in runs, with a man on second or third. He'd hit just .217 with runners in scoring position this year with a .544 OPS. On Friday, opportunity finally met execution.

With a ninth-inning swing, Kirk came through. A deep drive to Yankee Stadium's centre field pushed two Blue Jays runners around the bases as Kirk threw up his arms at second.

The clutch double snatched the Blue Jays a needed 4-2 victory to snap a five-game losing streak while giving Toronto's catcher the moment that eluded him.

It's been a month since the Blue Jays committed nearly $60 million to Kirk, anointing him as the catcher of the now and the future.

It was an investment - or bet - he'd take a step back to offensive relevance after down years in 2023 and 2024. Instead, before Friday's clutch knock, he'd trended further down.

In the top of the fourth inning, Kirk had his first chance to show signs of reversing the trend. The Blue Jays worked two men on in a tie game and Yankees starter Carlos Carrasco hung a slider right down the middle.

Kirk slashed at it, trying to drive the misplaced pitch to correct his runners in scoring position wrongs. Instead, Kirk pulled off the pitch, attempting to yank it, and sent a lazy fly ball to right field for an out.

The backstop was «a little bit pissed,» after the missed opportunity, Schneider said after the game.

The day could've been sour, but the anger didn't follow him. Two innings later, Kirk popped out of his stance behind the plate when Cody Bellinger broke for second base, firing a bullet to Bo Bichette for an easy tag and caught stealing.

A batter later, with Jazz Chisholm Jr. now testing Kirk's arm, it was the same bullet across the diamond and the same easy tag. Two stolen outs to close the sixth inning.

Even as the clutch hits turned into flyouts, Kirk's arm never slumped. Chisholm's caught stealing was Kirk's fifth of the season on 14 attempts. His 35.7 percent caught-stealing rate is nearly double the MLB average (18.3 percent).

Kirk's ability to compartmentalize is the trait most lauded by Schneider. He's «cool and calm,» the manager said, waiting for the next opportunity. In the ninth inning, that shot came.

With George Springer and Andrés Giménez bouncing off first and second, Kirk lashed at a changeup from Yankees closer Devin Williams.

It was a different pitch, but hung in nearly the same spot as the Carrasco slider Kirk whiffed on innings earlier.

This time, he didn't pull off, driving the delivery deep to centre. The ball bounced off the wall to send two runners home and put the Blue Jays back in front.

Toronto entered Friday leading the American League with 4.32 runners left on base and owned baseball's third-worst OPS with runners in scoring position (.599).

With the team creeping closer to another loss on the back of a near-silent offense, Kirk delivered the Blue Jays' first hit with runners in scoring position of the road trip.

SOURCE: The Athletic
Credit: Mitch Bannon