While it might be hundreds of kilometers away from the front row at the Rogers Centre, Wellington has been buzzing every time the Toronto Blue Jays play in this year’s deep MLB playoff run.
Even on a Tuesday night, supporters packed tightly into Pubblico Eatery on Wellington Street for game four of the World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Oct. 28. It’s a cozier vibe, one where the small crowd fell into a hush while the game’s on, only opting to resume conversations during the advertisements. It’s the kind of rare sports moment that seems to convince locals of all levels of fandom to tune in to watch Canada’s Team take a shot at the title.
“I don’t usually watch baseball, but I’m really excited because the Jays are playing,” said local Melanie Klein.
But it’s not just locals coming out to Wellington Street. Joining Klein at her table was her longtime family friend Rebecca Rayner, visiting all the way from the Greater Toronto Area on a trip for her work as an industrial engineer.
“I am bonding with my good friend Rebecca here, who knows everything about everyone in this baseball game.”
Rayner, a serious baseball fan, has been to every home game in Toronto during this year’s playoff run. With both herself and the Blue Jays on the road for game four, Rayner still had to make the most of the situation.
“I did not want to be sitting in a hotel room alone during this really momentous occasion,” Rayner said. “So I reached out to the friends that I had in Ottawa so that it could be a more shared experience and I definitely like coming to a bar for something like that.”
While a pub table isn’t quite the same as the atmosphere of a stadium, Rayner said a bar watch party creates its own unique excitement.
“I remember during game five in the 2015 ALDS when Bautista hit the seventh inning home run,” Rayner said of José Bautista’s well-known bat-flip homerun a decade prior. “I was at a bar and hugged random strangers.”
Moments like that one are what most locals are hoping to experience on Wellington Street during this World Series. Fortunately for Jays fans, game four ultimately favoured Toronto as they beat the Dodgers 6-1 to tie the best-of-seven series at two games apiece.
It was the ideal result for Hintonburg local Kate McCarthy, who’s been coming to Pubblico to cheer on the Jays throughout the series.
“I’ve been here for a couple games,” McCarthy said. “Walkability and great bartenders. And as a woman coming, I like female bartenders.”
This time, she met up with her childhood friend, who grew up with McCarthy in the neighbourhood. Heading to Wellington Street during these playoffs have been a chance to bond over Canada’s team with old friends and new.
“It’s a shared experience, so it’s great.” McCarthy said. “And even the people you know, and then you end up making friends you don’t know.”
