Vladimir Guerrero Jr. conceded to praying in the tunnel before George Springer hit a decisive three-run home run to send the Toronto Blue Jays to the World Series.
Springer’s shot to left field in the seventh inning saw the Blue Jays surge into a 4-3 lead they would not relinquish in Game 7 of the American League Championship Series with the Seattle Mariners.
The win sets up a World Series matchup with the Los Angeles Dodgers. It will be the first time since clinching back-to-back titles in 1993 that the Blue Jays have contested a World Series.
Montreal-born Guerrero was named MVP of the ALCS, and was highly emotional as he revelled in helping Canada’s lone MLB team back to the biggest stage.
Asked how he reacted when Springer sent them into the lead, Guerrero told a post-game press conference: “I mean, it was very emotional when I saw George hit the homer, but the greater thing that I did is right before that inning, went down to the tunnel, get down on my knees, and I asked God for the win, to bless us, and he did, and then George hit the homer. So it was great.
“I was born here. I grew up in the Dominican, and then from the moment that I signed here, that I knew I was going to be here my entire career, I knew I had to make — somehow to make all the fans, the entire country, proud of me, of my team.
“And like I always say, my challenge is to bring the World Series here back to Canada.”
The Blue Jays will be underdogs against the defending champions, with the Dodgers’ star-studded roster led by two-way phenom Shohei Ohtani.
Ohtani produced arguably the greatest postseason performance of all time in Game 4 of the NLCS as the Dodgers swept the Milwaukee Brewers.
That game saw Ohtani pitch six scoreless innings, struck out ten batters, and hit three home runs.
But Guerrero is undaunted by the task in front of Toronto.
“I mean, for me, every game is a challenge, every series is a challenge,” he added.
“I know they have great players. So do we. But on the field it’s when everything matters.”
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: 101greatgoals.com
