Deep Left Field with Mike Wilner

Guests: Blue Jays starter Eric Lauer and reliever Joe Mantiply, Dodgers 1B coach Chris Woodward
This week in Deep Left Field, we go over what was nearly a winless Week That Was for your Toronto Blue Jays, with two key players hitting the injured list and another set for regular-season- ending knee surgery.
It was a rough week both on and off the field for the Jays, many of whom have been struggling with a bug that's tearing through the clubhouse. Eric Lauer believes he may have been Patient Zero for what he calls the "Flu Jays," and he joins us to talk about the team's rough start as they suffer through illness and injury.
We meet the new guy, 35-year-old Joe Mantiply, who is here to help stabilize the bullpen with Brendon Little having been shipped out to Buffalo.
Former Jay Chris Woodward, now first-base coach of the L.A. Dodgers, stops by to talk about winning the World Series at his former home and to reminisce about the early-2000s Jays teams he was a part of.
All that plus the mailbag at [email protected]!

For a few fleeting hours on Nov. 1, 2025, Toronto felt like it might be 1993 all over again.
And though the Blue Jays didn't win the 2025 World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers, some people ask if that winner-take-all Game 7 might have been the greatest baseball game ever played. That's probably a hard idea to stomach if you're a Blue Jays fan, but the advanced statistics might support it.
MLB analysts have discussed it, online community groups have debated it, and according to the numbers, Championship Win Probability Added (cWPA) changed win probability more times than in any other game in history.
The only thing that game was missing was a walk-off win. Had that happened you can all but guarantee more Canadians would have supported the idea of it being the greatest baseball game in history since it would have meant their team came out on top.
Toronto Star baseball columnists Mike Wilner and Gregor Chisholm break down some of the plays and analytics within what is undoubtedly in the conversation as one of the greatest baseball games — and World Series — ever played.
Editor's note: You can watch this as a video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJyTXYJwivQ

Guests: Blue Jays pitchers Max Scherzer and Spencer Miles, Athletics outfielder Denzel Clarke  
This week in Deep Left Field, we go over the Blue Jays' week that was, which featured a sweep of the Athletics and an ugly series loss to the sad-sack Colorado Rockies, with a special emphasis on Cody Ponce's catastrophic knee injury and what that means for the rotation.
Then we hear from two Jays pitchers at the absolute opposite ends of the spectrum. Max Scherzer is starting his 19th season in the big leagues and is ticketed for immortality in Cooperstown when he's done. Spencer Miles is a rookie, selected in the Rule 5 draft, who still hasn't hit the 25-inning mark as a professional. Incredibly, the two hurlers are linked by a Missouri snowstorm. They both tell us that story.
Also, Pickering's own Denzel Clarke made an opening day roster for the first time in his career, after playing for Canada at the World Baseball Classic for the second time. We catch up with the centre field magician as we look out at the stands where he saw his first big-league game.
All that, plus the mailbag at [email protected]!

Toronto Star columnists Gregor Chisholm and Mike Wilner gathered on the field of the Rogers Centre during batting practice, to discuss the 2026 Toronto Blue Jays and what might be in store during the 50th season of Toronto Blue Jays baseball.