The Current·Q&AFormer Blue Jays catcher Pat Borders says he sees a lot of similarities between his winning 1990’s team and today’s playersFormer World Series MVP sees similarities between winning 1990’s team and todayPadraig Moran · CBC Radio · Posted: Oct 21, 2025 1:00 PM EDT | Last Updated: 3 hours agoToronto Blue Jays Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and George Springer, right, celebrate after beating the Seattle Mariners on Monday night in Toronto (David J. Phillip/AP)LISTEN | Fans exuberant as Blue Jays head to World Series:The Current19:22Toronto Blue Jays head to the World SeriesToday’s Blue Jays have a closeness and cohesion that could help them win the World Series, says a star of the Jays team that won twice in the early 1990s.“I would say the ‘92, ‘93 teams that we had rival that … I see a lot of similarities with the team chemistry, the team make-up,” said Pat Borders, a former Blue Jays catcher and 1992 World Series MVP.“That’s exactly what you need,” he told The Current’s Matt Galloway. The Toronto Blue Jays beat the Seattle Mariners 4-3 in Game 7 of the American League Championship Series on Monday night, after George Springer hit a three-run home run in the bottom of the seventh inning. The Jays now advance to the World Series for the first time in 32 years, where they will face the defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers in a best-of-seven series. The first game is in Toronto on Friday night. Borders spoke with Galloway about what it was like to win in ’92 and ’93, and whether the Blue Jays have what it takes to win again. Here is part of their conversation.Did that Springer home run remind you of Joe Carter’s shot, that won it all in ’93? Oh my goodness, a lot of similarities there. It’s good to see him step forward after getting injured like that, hit in the knee and just fight through the pain, which he obviously did. It shows the character of the team a little bit.WATCH | Joe Carter takes Blue Jays to victory in 1993:I see a lot of similarities with the team chemistry, the team make-up. A lot of them came up through the minor leagues together, like the teams of the past that I played on did. And you are close, and that is a part that you need to win, especially in the post-season. You see some other teams try to put together teams in and out pay everybody and bring people together. Most times that doesn’t work.The personalities that come up through the minor leagues, such as our team’s [wins] in the 90s and the team you have there right now, a lot of the young kids came up together. A big percentage of the team played in the minor leagues together and you can’t recreate that kind of chemistry and closeness. They also brought in some big players that always had personality, chemistry, knowledge, experience and all those things too. So I think there’s huge similarities between the teams that I played for in the ’90s and this team this year, and I see good things happening for them.What is it like to play in the World Series? You can’t describe it, but after the game was over, I know I was emotionally exhausted. I went home and slept. People think you want to go out and party and have a good time — [and] you know, we had a great time after the games.WATCH | Pat Borders on the similarities between 1990s and today:Former Blue Jay Pat Borders says team has ‘camaraderie’ to win World Series titleFormer Blue Jays catcher Pat Borders — who was a member of the World Series championship teams in 1992 and 1993 and won the World Series MVP in ’92 — says he sees similarities between those teams and this year’s American League champions. ‘That camaraderie … really makes you a close-knit family,’ he said. However … the concentration level that you have to have as a baseball player, as a pitcher, as a catcher: how did you get this guy out? The next guy you got to get out? Do you change it up a little bit? Do you switch it? Any pitch or any moment can change the outcome of the series and the game. So for me, it was just a mentally exhausting time. And when it was over, I was ready to get to sleep, really get to bed. You think they can do this against the Dodgers? I think anybody can do anything in the playoffs. You have a seven-game series. It’s not super long. It’s not like a 162-game season.Teams, batters, pitchers, they have little bell curves of cyclical good and bad times … I think baseball’s kind of like that. You go through good times and bad times. You just ride the wave of the good times. And hopefully it’s during the time of the playoffs. You were a hero. You’re still a hero in this town and in this country. There’s an opportunity for somebody else to take that crown. Oh please, you’ve got Springer who did that. And there’s plenty of people going to step up and do that. I didn’t follow what [Springer] did much during the season, but he has been on fire and unstoppable as of late. So anybody can step up and change Blue Jay history, which he did last night.Q&A has been edited for length and clarity. Audio produced by Arman Aghbali and Emma Posca
Blue Jays have the chemistry to win the World Series, says former catcher Pat Borders
