Louis Varland blows first save of season as Blue Jays waste elite outing by Dylan Cease in loss to Cubs

Toronto would finish with a putrid 1-for-19 with runners in scoring position

Published Aug 06, 2026  •  4 minute read

Blue Jays starting pitcher Dylan Cease delivers to the plate during the second inning against the Cubs at Wrigley Field in Chicago, Thursday, Aug. 6, 2026. Photo by Geoff Stellfox /Getty Images

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Two strikes and two outs in the ninth inning, the Blue Jays leading the host Chicago Cubs 2-0, the moment screamed for Louis Varland to close it out and continue the Blue Jays’ good vibes.

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When the Jays were last at home, it was Varland who began the ninth inning against the St. Louis Cardinals, who would eventually push across four runs to win the game.

Thursday at Wrigley Field, where starting pitcher Dylan Cease pieced together yet another masterful and scoreless outing across seven innings, Varland entered the ninth and would surrender a leadoff single.

The drama began in Alex Bregman’s at-bat.

One swing later and the day, which began with the Jays taking a 1-0 lead on a first-inning balk, required extra innings when the real fun began.

Welcome to Wrigley Field.

Cease’s outing would be somewhat muted, which is saying a lot for someone who struck out 10 while yielding just two hits.

For the fifth straight road start, Cease did not give up a single run.

Varland has been as close to a sure thing when it comes to saving a game, but Thursday was the rare and lone exception.

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Jeff Hoffman might be one of the few who could sympathize, even though the Jays traded him to the Twins.

A runner thrown out at the plate in extra innings would also be forgotten as will a highlight reel catch by Ernie Clement.

What will be remembered was the Jays 3-2 loss to the Cubs in 11 innings.

So many good things produced by the Jays, but in the end the game was decided on a Brandon Valenzuela’s throwing error that resulted in Chicago scoring the game’s winning run.

Had the Jays been better with runners in scoring position, the game would have been decided early, especially the way Cease pitched.

For the second straight game, franchise face Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (hamstring/back) wasn’t in the starting lineup as the Jays returned to Chicago to face the Cubs in a makeup game originally scheduled on Father’s Day until rain forced a postponement.

The following are three takeaways on a day that began with the Jays going 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position through five innings and would finish with a putrid 1-for-19, a day when the Jays had outhit the Cubs 11-3 until Bregman’s ninth-inning two-out dinger.

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1. Three’s a charm

Alejandro Kirk hit third in the order.

For the first time since June 12 when he returned after missing more than two months because of a broken thumb, he had three hits.

As it turned out, he did one better.

In his return, Kirk went 3-for-3 with a double, two RBI and one walk in helping the Jays defeat the New York Yankees, 8-5.

When he came up big with two outs in the seventh, Kirk’s fourth hit Thursday, his first four-hit game since June when the Jays were in St. Louis, knocked in Toronto’s second run.

2. Four the record

For the fourth time this season, the Jays had Myles Straw hit leadoff.

When previously inserted into the role, it was more a case of trial and error in the wake of an injury to George Springer at a time when the Jays used a handful of players at the top of the batting order.

This time, it was more reward-based and also due to the matchup given the Cubs were going with a left-handed starter.

Truth is Straw is a very competent player in every aspect, save for his lack of slug.

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Following the trade of Daulton Varsho to Houston, it was obvious Straw would play more often.

By no means was it a mano-a-mano competition, but the game within the game during the Astros series was the Straw-Varsho dynamic.

Straw easily emerged as the better player, recording five hits in 10 at-bats, including four that went for extra bases.

He went 0-for-5 with two strikeouts Thursday, including an inning-ending groundout in the 11th.

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3. One for the books

The Jays opened the scoring in the their first at-bats Thursday in the most unorthodox way via a disengagement violation, which sounds like a mouthful.

With Nathan Lukes at the plate and runners on the corners, Cubs starter David Peterson threw over to first not once, not twice but three times, which is allowed, but it comes with the condition that the pitcher must pick off the runner.

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When Peterson failed to pick off Springer, a balk was immediately called.

Springer took second base, while Kazuma Okamoto, who initially reached base on a walk, was able to walk home as the Jays took an early 1-0 advantage.

It should be pointed out that Springer had stolen only seven bases entering the day, which speaks to how perplexing it was for Peterson to even bother holding Springer close to the base.

Up Next

Jose Soriano is scheduled to make his 23rd start of the season and first for the Jays after the club acquired the right-hander on Monday’s trade deadline from the L.A. Angels; Soriano’s last outing came on July 26 when he earned the win, yielding one run on three hits across five innings against the San Francisco Giants; his talents and potential presence with the Jays are undeniable, but Soriano needs to cut down on his walks; he issued three against the Giants and only twice this season has Soriano completed an outing without a walk; Friday night’s game (6:40 p.m. first pitch) is the first of a three-game series against the host Philadelphia Phillies.

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