Thirty-two years ago, the Blue Jays won their second World Series title in franchise history because of a volatile closer that failed to get the job done. They lost a chance to win their third for a similar reason Saturday night.

Jeff Hoffman struggled through long stretches of the regular season and his issues popped up again at the worst possible time. With the Jays two outs away from a championship, the hard-throwing right-hander was done in by another home run.

There were only three relievers in Major League Baseball that had more than Hoffman’s seven blown saves in 2025. Only one reliever allowed more homers. Those two things were a concern entering the playoffs and, in Game 7, they got in the Jays’ way of the organization’s first championship since 1993.

Hoffman surrendered the

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