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ByIanHarrison TheAssociatedPress TORONTO Edwin Encarnacion hit a three-run homer in the 11th inning off Ubaldo Jimenez, and Toronto Blue Jays beat the Baltimore Orioles 5-2 in Tues- day night's AL wild card game to advance to a Division Series matchup against Texas. Jimenez relieved Brian Duen- sing with one out in the 11th, and Devon Travis singled in a 1-1 pitch. Reigning AL MVP Josh Donaldson singled on the next pitch, and Travis went all the way to third as left fielder Nolan Re- imold bobbled the ball. Encarnacion sent the follow- ing pitch, a 91 mph fastball, soar- ing into the second deck in left. Encarnacion immediately knew it was gone and raised both arms in triumph, index fingers pointed skyward. Francisco Liriano retired five straight batters on four ground- outs and a strikeout for the win after closer Roberto Osuna left with an injury. Orioles closer Zach Britton, who was perfect in 47 save chances during the regular season, never got in the game as Orioles man- ager Buck Showalter saved him in case Baltimore took a lead in ex- tra innings on the road. Toronto opens the Division Se- ries at Texas on Thursday. Last year, the Blue Jays beat the Rang- ers in five-game Division Series, sparked by Jose Bautista's memo- rable bat flip following a tiebreak- ing, three-run homer in the sev- enth inning of Game 5. The teams brawled in May this year when Bautista was punched in the face by Rangers infielder Rougned Odor following a play at second base. MLB PLAYOFFS 11 th -i nni ng HR li s Ja ys o ve r Orioles By Josh Dubow The Associated Press SANTA CLARA Torrey Smith en- tered the season as one of the few San Francisco receivers with any proven track record in the NFL. One quarter of the way through the season, the Niners have strug- gled to get their best deep threat the ball. Smith has just nine catches for 106 yards and one touchdown through four games with the NFL's least productive passing of- fense and the frustration was ap- parent when he threw his helmet on the sideline after one failed at- tempt last game. "I'm fine being patient, I'm completely fine not getting the ball as long as we're moving the ball and we're scoring points," Smith said Tuesday. "I'll never complain about that. It's tough when I'm waiting and I know we have an opportunity to change a game like that and we miss. It's tough." Smith had a couple of out- bursts during Sunday's loss to Dallas when he was targeted just twice all game. The most nota- ble came when he threw his hel- met on the sideline after Blaine Gabbert badly underthrew a deep pass, turning a possible go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter into an interception. "I feel like if we hit that, we win the game," Smith said. "I was frus- trated. I shouldn't probably show it as much but I want to win. I'm passionate about winning. We work too hard not to win here and I know that we can. It was just a little frustration moment but it won't happen again." That was the first time all game that Gabbert even threw the ball in Smith's direction. The only other pass to Smith came on San Francisco's final drive when he caught a 3-yard pass on fourth- and-6 that ended the Niners' hopes for a comeback. But the rest of the day most of the passes went toward slot re- ceiver Jeremy Kerley and tight end Garrett Celek. "We're not trying to force any- body the ball," offensive coordi- NFL Forgotten, frustrated By Mike Fitzpatrick The Associated Press NEWYORK Bright lights, big city, ol' country hardball. Madison Bumgarner against Noah Syndergaard with the sea- son on the line. A pair of tower- ing tough guys you probably don't want to mess with. Playoff pitching matchups don't get much better. Toting his outstanding October resume to the mound, Bumgar- ner will start for the San Fran- cisco Giants against Syndergaard and the New York Mets in the NL wild-card game Wednesday night. The winner moves on to face the major league-best Chicago Cubs (103-58) in a best-of-five Division Series. The loser heads home for the winter. "It's going to be an exciting game," Giants manager Bruce Bochy said Tuesday, when both teams worked out at Citi Field. "I mean, this is the fun thing about postseason is you're going to get great matchups like this." It took 162 games to set it up. San Francisco, the top team in the majors at the All-Star break, struggled badly throughout the second half before finishing with a four-game winning streak. That was enough to hold off St. Louis by one game and secure the last NL playoff spot on the final day of the regular season. New York, the defending NL champion, was two games under .500 on Aug. 19 after losing con- secutive games in San Francisco. But with slugger Yoenis Cespedes and shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera back from the disabled list, the MLB PLAYOFFS Countryhardballinthebigcity By Josh Dubow The Associated Press SAN JOSE The San Jose Sharks never were closer to that elusive Stanley Cup title than they were last season when a long playoff run ended two wins short of a champi- onship. Even with the core of that team back for another shot at the Cup, the Sharks know they have a long road ahead if they want to take that next step. "The tough part is you don't get to start where you ended last year," coach Peter DeBoer said. "You have to start right at the bottom of the mountain again and start climb- ing." No team in the past eight seasons has made it back to the final after losing the previous season. But at least the Sharks return all of the players who carried the team last season. High-scoring captain Joe Pav- elski and playmaking center Joe Thornton will once again anchor the top line, do-everything center Logan Couture should be health- ier after missing 30 games last sea- son and shutdown defender Marc- Edouard Vlasic anchors a strong blue line with the dangerous Brent Burns. Thrown in goalie Martin Jones, who was stellar in his first full sea- son as a starter, and the experience gained from that long playoff run and the Sharks are confident head- ing into the season. "We've been there, we didn't get what we wanted," forward Patrick Marleau said. "We have a better un- derstanding of what it takes to get there and how much more you'll have to give to get that ultimate goal." Here are some things to watch for with the Sharks this season. Hertl'shome Tomas Hertl's game took off last season when he was moved to a wing on the top line with Thornton and Pavelski. Hertl struggled to pro- duce points when he centered his own line but could get another shot this year. If Hertl can play third-line center, the Sharks will have some of the best depth down the middle of NHL R un ne r- up S ha rk s hop e to m ak e that one last step to title this season It's Bumgarner vs. Syndergaard — both big and tough — as Giants face Mets in National League wild-card game JULIEJACOBSON—THEASSOCIATEDPRESS Madison Bumgarner, who will start for the Giants tonight against the Mets, throws in the outfield during a workout Tuesday in New York. GIANTS PAGE 2 JOSIE LEPE — BAY AREA NEWS GROUP 49ers wide receiver Torrey Smith hears it from the Dallas sideline, including Cowboys coach Jason Garrett, during Sunday's game. "I'm fine being patient, I'm completely fine not getting the ball as long as we're moving the ball and we're scoring points. I'll never complain about that. It's tough when I'm waiting and I know we have an opportunity to change a game like that and we miss. It's tough." Torrey Smith, 49ers wide receiver Wi de r ec ei ve r T or re y S mi th b ec om es im pat ie nt a s 49ers struggle to get the ball to their best deep threat 49ERS PAGE 2 MARCIO JOSE SANCHEZ — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE Joe Thornton will again be one of the Sharks' anchors this season. The NHL's Western Conference should be wild, as usual, with a slew of teams with a shot to advance to the Stanley Cup finals. SHARKS PAGE 2 Encarnacion's big shot sends Toronto into ALDS against Texas SPORTS » redbluffdailynews.com Wednesday, October 5, 2016 MORE AT FACEBOOK.COM/RBDAILYNEWS AND TWITTER.COM/REDBLUFFNEWS B1