Blue Jays earn a needed win over the Dodgers, and an early-season exhale

AL EastBlue JaysOriolesRaysRed SoxYankeesAL CentralGuardiansRoyalsTigersTwinsWhite SoxAL WestAngelsAstrosAthleticsMarinersRangersNL EastBravesMarlinsMetsNationalsPhilliesNL CentralBrewersCardinalsCubsPiratesRedsNL WestDiamondbacksDodgersGiantsPadresRockiesScores & ScheduleStandingsPodcastsThe Windup NewsletterFantasyMLB ProspectsMLB OddsMLB PicksPower RankingsFans Speak UpTop ProspectsAnalysisBlue Jays earn a needed win over the Dodgers, and an early-season exhaleDavis Schneider was doused by his teammates after playing a crucial role in a much-needed win over the Dodgers on Wednesday. John E. Sokolowski / Imagn Images Share full articleTORONTO — An exhale. An off day. An afternoon without another player added to the injured list. Most importantly, a win. The Toronto Blue Jays needed it all. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. caught a throw from Jeff Hoffman in the ninth, taking off his hat and raising both arms towards the closed dome above. The horn blared at Rogers Centre for the first time in eight days, signifying the Jays’ 4-3 win. A victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers brought an end to Toronto’s tough week, one filled with injuries, illness and losses. It provided the Jays with a positive moment heading into a day off. It showcased a Blue Jays (5-7) squad looking a little more like the team they hope to be. “Just get back to neutral a little bit,” manager John Schneider said. “Shake hands, high five, get lights on in the clubhouse and enjoy an off day.” The Blue Jays have been begging for a spark for the last six games, anything to reignite an offence and bring home a win. Over the last couple of days, after Toronto’s string of losses, the club’s manager called for a big hit. That’s all they needed. Yet Wednesday’s ignition came in a different form. Davis Schneider popped off Toronto’s bench in the seventh inning, walking on six pitches and later scoring the first run in a rally. An inning later, Schneider watched four balls fly by once again. He darted from first to third on a single and then, after the ball skittered away from Miguel Rojas as Andrés Giménez attempted to steal, Schneider bolted for home, too. He slid across home plate, popping up to slam his hands together in celebration. “A big hit usually leads to a win,” John Schneider said. “Sometimes it’s scoring on an error that leads to a win. You need a win.” After Hoffman closed out the ninth, Rogers Centre’s horn cathartically blasted. In general, one-run wins in April don’t mean much. They’re drops in the big bucket that is a 162-game season. But after six straight losses and a growing injured list, Wednesday’s win felt significant. It felt like one the Jays needed — or at least desperately wanted — to have. “There’s definitely a lot of fight in this group,” Wednesday’s starter Dylan Cease said. “We’re not exactly thrilled with how we’ve started, but nobody’s panicking.” Long-term, though, the greater significance of the Jays’ win over Los Angeles is the method in which they did it. It didn’t look like a fluke victory. They didn’t run their way into some lucky runs. And it certainly wasn’t a case of beating up on a weak opponent. Wednesday’s win was the sort that the Jays orchestrated often last year. They scored first, for the first time in a week. Five Toronto hitters reached in the seventh inning, putting pressure on the Dodgers’ bullpen. The team took advantage of mistakes and pushed for more on the base paths. Guerrero and George Springer each had two hits. It still wasn’t perfect. Toronto stranded nine runners and Guerrero ran into an out at third early in the contest. There are still holes on this injured roster and there were mistakes that can’t be made. But if the Blue Jays continue to play as they did on Wednesday, and get healthy, more wins should arrive. “Kind of fitting that we snapped this skid using almost everyone,” manager John Schneider said, “like we do.” Now comes the exhale. The off day was going to arrive no matter what happened on Wednesday. Toronto’s first few weeks of the 2026 season seemed like they were all leading to this World Series rematch against the Dodgers. Now, it’s over. Now, a day off. Now the Jays can move on to the rest of the season. If they meet the Dodgers again, it’ll be in October. “There’s still 149 games left,” Davis Schneider said. “There’s still a lot of baseball to be played. Hopefully we can use this to jump start into a win streak here.” Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Mitch Bannon is a staff writer for The Athletic covering the Toronto Blue Jays. Before joining The Athletic, he covered the Blue Jays for SI.com and wrote for MLB.com in a freelance capacity. He is a graduate of McGill University and the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University. Follow Mitch on Twitter @MitchBannon