Blue Jays: Top 5 most memorable moments from the 2021 season

4. Manoah’s magnificent debut

The starting rotation looked quite different at the beginning of the season compared to the end, with Tanner Roark, Ross Striping, and TJ Zeuch filling in the gaps. It wasn’t long before everyone seemed to be looking for a big arm to help the struggling rotation. Eyes went towards the 23-year-old, right-handed pitcher Alek Manoah who was dominating in Triple A for the Buffalo Bisons, after only playing in the minor leagues for only six games in 2019 and only three starts in 2021 when he was called up to the big leagues.

In those three games with Buffalo he pitched 18 innings, allowing only one earned run, three walks, and seven hits, with a total of 27 strikeouts. To those who thought he needed more time in the minors, I’m glad you were wrong.

Manoah officially made his MLB debut on May 27 against the New York Yankees, and you couldn’t have asked for a better first outing. The Florida product pitched six scoreless innings with seven strikeouts, and only gave up two hits and two walks. Little did we know, this would be the start of many great outings for the rookie.

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Manoah finished the 2021 season with a 3.22 ERA, nine wins, and 127 strikeouts in 111 innings and was also named the American League rookie of the month for September. Even though he probably won’t win Rookie of the Year that we all know he deserves, he will go into the 2022 season with his spot in the rotation successfully secured.

3. Bichette’s go-ahead homer

The final series against the Yankees at the Rogers Centre was arguably the most intense and important series of the Blue Jays 2021 season. After losing game one to the Yankees, we all knew that game two was a must win. It started off looking great for the Jays who were up 4-0 through the first four innings. But the Yankees aren’t going to go down easy and by the seventh inning, New York had tied it up at 5-5.

Up comes Bo Bichette at the bottom of the eighth inning, and he hits home run number 28 and his second on the night to the opposite field, scoring the go-ahead run that the Blue Jays were so desperately looking for. The crowd is going nuts, some of the most loud and excited fans we had seen this season.

As he rounds the bases, Bichette, who is normally very reserved with his expressions, shows great emotion as he drove in the go-ahead run for the Blue Jays. The Jays ended up winning the game 6-5, with Bo going 3-4 with two home runs on the evening.

In a game where the bats of Teoscar Hernandez and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. fell silent, Bichette is proving once again that when one bat cools down, another will heat up in its place.

2. Semien’s walk-off

Like many of us, I wasn’t sure about Marcus Semien when he was first signed with the Blue Jays in the offseason. But boy, were we all mistaken. Not only has he added a massive contribution to the Blue Jays team this year offensively and defensively, he has also became a leader to many of the young Jays.

The night of September 3 is just another one of the many reasons why Semien made such an impact on this team. The Jays were having a tough time against Marcus’ former team the Oakland Athletics, down 8-2 through the first seven innings until a six-run eight inning was put up by the Jays. The Athletics came back firing, scoring two more at the top of the ninth against closer Jordan Romano making it 10-8 for Oakland going into the bottom of the ninth.

With two on base, courtesy of a Breyvic Valera single and a Springer double, Marcus comes up to the plate and wins the game for the Blue Jays with one swing of the bat on a sinker and walks-off the game, winning 11-10 against Oakland.

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No doubt one of the most exciting, if not the most exciting, endings we have seen this year, and definitely one to remember, regardless of where Marcus Semien ends up next year. Little did we know that this game would launch a seven game win streak, two series sweeps and the start of a glimmer of hope for a potential Jays playoff run.

1. There’s no place like home

After nearly two years away from home and playing in Single-A and Triple A ballparks, the Blue Jays were finally allowed to come back home to Toronto and played their first real home game on July 30 against the Kansas City Royals.

After seeing the crowds of blue and white Jays jerseys make their way to the Rogers Centre, it felt like the city was alive again. The opening ceremony was one that had not only me holding back tears but also manager Charlie Montoyo and the players. The return to Toronto also sparked many offensive runs, with the Jays going 25-11 at the Rogers Centre, including sweeps against the Royals, Athletics, and Cleveland Indians.

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Although the playoffs were just ever so slightly out of reach for the Blue Jays, the improvement from almost every batter and pitcher was clear, and there is so much good to take away from this season.

I have no doubt that the 2022 Toronto Blue Jays will continue to battle, improve and impress. If  this season shown us at least one thing, it was that this Jays team is always going to give it their all, no matter what team, pitcher, batter or odds are stacked against them.