With a packed house and massive audience watching from home on the Canada Day holiday, the Blue Jays finally treated everyone to a stress-free day of baseball. There haven’t been many of these, but if the Blue Jays are going to dig themselves out of this 41-46 record to take a run at an AL Wild Card spot, Wednesday’s 9-3 win over the Mets held plenty of answers. This is what mattered most from the win: **1\. Sean Keys launched his first MLB home run** The biggest key? Sean Keys. The Blue Jays’ No. 14 prospect per MLB Pipeline launched a three-run shot in the third inning, finally giving the Blue Jays some of the breathing room they’ve been searching for all season. Every decision that followed came so much easier, too, allowing the Blue Jays to turn to Patrick Corbin out of the bullpen just one day after he was removed from the rotation. Given the five-run cushion, the Blue Jays allowed Corbin to run with it after Spencer Miles pitched the second, third and fourth frames, which saved an exhausted bullpen. “That was great, man,” manager John Schneider said. “He’s seen some tough pitching this series, both starters and relievers. He stayed on that fastball. I think he knew he got it even more so than us, based on his reaction. He’s been doing that. Big swing for us, big swing for him.” Power can make all of your problems go away, and the Blue Jays kept it going later in the game when Myles Straw launched a three-run shot of his own to put the game completely out of reach. **2\. Spencer Miles was touching 99 mph** Some of the sinkers thrown by Miles on Wednesday were unfair. It’s one thing to be sitting at 98 mph and touching 99 with your four-seamer, but to do that with sinker movement (tailing left to right) while spotting it wherever you want? Good luck to all who face him. “I don’t know if it was Canada Day, the red jerseys or what it was,” Schneider joked. “He seemed like a different guy today. It was impressive, both the stuff and his execution of it. I’m kind of running out of things to say about him.” Miles gave the Blue Jays three scoreless innings, striking out five Mets while allowing just one hit and a walk. Even as one of the breakout stars of 2026 and the surprise of the season as a Rule 5 Draft pick with barely any pro experience, this is the best we’ve seen Miles look in a Blue Jays uniform.
