Isiah Kiner-Falefa has heartfelt message for Blue Jays fans

Speaking to reporters after Tuesday's win, IKF spoke from the heart to Toronto Blue Jays fans across the country.
Isiah Kiner-Falefa
Isiah Kiner-Falefa | Kevin Sousa/GettyImages

After spending the early part of his career with the Texas Rangers and New York Yankees, Isiah Kiner-Falefa joined the Toronto Blue Jays ahead of the 2024 season. It was a move that had mixed reactions as Kiner-Falefa was signed by the Blue Jays shortly after they missed out on signing superstar Shoei Ohtani.

While Kiner-Falefa had a better than expected tenure in Toronto with seven home runs, 75 hits, 33 RBI's and batted .292 in 83 games, he was traded midway through the season to the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Blue Jays went into a sellers mode at the deadline and IKF was one of the pieces they felt comfortable parting with and they received infield prospect Charles McAdoo in return.

Just over a year later, Kiner-Falefa is back with the Blue Jays, as Toronto claimed him off waivers, after the Pirates failed to recoup anything for him at the 2025 trade deadline. Now back with the Blue Jays, the 30-year-old is just as happy to be back in the Six.

IKF clearly missed being a Blue Jay after postgame comments

On Tuesday night, the Blue Jays earned a pivotal 4-3 win against the Houston Astros at Rogers Centre. After the game, Kalefa-Finer showed his love and appreciation for the Blue Jay fans and the country the team proudly calls home.

"Great crowd, I'm so happy to be back in Canada. Got goosebumps out there. Just trying to slow down and appreciate where I'm at," said Kiner-Falefa after coming through in one of the biggest moments of the Blue Jays season. During that game against the Astros, with the Blue Jays down 3-1 in the bottom of the ninth inning, Kalefa-Finer tied the game with a one-out, two-run single. The Blue Jays would then win the game in the 10th inning on a Tyler Heineman walk-off.

The Blue Jays' extra innings win was their 43rd comeback win of the season, which is tied for the most in the MLB with the Los Angeles Dodgers. Having Kalefa-Finer come through in that pivotal moment just speaks to how deep the team is and how much they will rely on that depth to carry them over the finish line.

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