Never before had this been done in the half-century history of the Toronto Blue Jays.
No time like the present for Addison Barger.
The Blue Jays called upon Barger to pinch-hit in the bottom of the sixth inning of Game 1 of the World Series.
Toronto had already opened up a 5-2 lead, and the bases were loaded.
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The Los Angeles Dodgers countered with a lefty reliever, Anthony Banda.
But then Banda hung a breaking ball, and Barger didn't miss.
He clobbered a high fly ball, deep to right-center, gone.
Pandemonium in the Rogers Centre.
ADDISON BARGER
— MLB (@MLB) October 25, 2025
PINCH-HIT
GRAND SLAM #WORLDSERIES pic.twitter.com/REg58MNosp
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A few batters later, Alejandro Kirk added a two-run home run for 11-2 Blue Jays.
What an inning.
Barger's home run has continued an improbable rise. He wasn't viewed as much of a power hitter coming through the minors.
Now, he hits the ball as hard as almost anyone in baseball.
And he picked the absolute perfect time to do it, smacking the first pinch-hit grand slam in World Series history and sending all of Canada into a frenzy.
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