Chris Bassitt stepped on the mound in the eighth inning as his teammates patted him on the back. Manager John Schneider took the ball and offered the only words necessary: ​​”Go be a dad.”

Taking the mound after a 91-minute rain delay and ready to return to Toronto when his wife went into labor, Bassitt shut down his former team with three hits to lead the Blue Jays to a 3-0 victory over the Mets. from New York on Friday.

“I’m sure there are a million things going through his mind,” Schneider said. “Keeping everything under control was really impressive.”

Bassitt’s wife, Jessica, was due to give birth to their second child after daughter Landry. A private plane was ready to take Bassitt home as soon as he exited the game and arrived at one of the smaller airports in the New York area.

What was supposed to be a 7:10 p.m. start was delayed by a storm, with the first launch finally launching at 8:41 p.m.

Schneider credited the team’s director of travel, Mike Shaw, for delaying the plane’s departure time. There was no consideration to scratch Bassitt.

“He was pacing around the clubhouse, staying cooped up like a veteran pitcher does,” Schneider said.

Bassitt (6-4) tied his season high with eight strikeouts in 7 2/3 innings and didn’t walk a game on 101 pitches. He remained in the dugout until Tim Mayza struck out Brandon Nimmo to end the eighth inning, but left Citi Field before the game ended at 11:12 p.m.

“There’s a lot of stress, a lot of pressure just to get that game going and start on time so he can get home to his wife,” said Daulton Varsho, who hit a two-run homer in the ninth off Jeff Brigham. “It was a great experience for him to be able to do that and then to experience the experience of having his second child.”

Traded from Oakland to the Mets before the 2022 season, Bassitt went 15-9 with a 3.42 ERA and then signed a three-year, $63 million contract with the Blue Jays. He hadn’t been to Citi Field since he lost the deciding third game of a National League wild-card series against San Diego last October.

The 34-year-old right-hander escaped a first-and-third jam with no outs in the third, retiring Brandon Nimmo and Jeff McNeil on pop-ups around a called third strike to Francisco Lindor. That inning started a streak of 14 consecutive batters retired by Bassitt.

Jordan Romano finished off the four-hit ball for his 14th save in 15 chances, the Blue Jays’ ninth shutout, the most in the majors. New York has been shutout eight times, matching the Mets’ total last year.

Springer homered on Verlander’s second pitch for his 54th leadoff home run, tying Alfonso Soriano for second behind Rickey Henderson’s 81.

New York has been outscored 46-13 in the first inning this season.

Verlander (2-3) allowed five hits and struck out eight in six innings. He threw 117 pitches, the most by a major leaguer this season and the most by Verlander since 2019, before undergoing Tommy John surgery.

“Grateful for the opportunity and glad I was able to pull it off,” Verlander said.

RAPE

Nimmo struck out in the eighth when home plate umpire Nic Lentz called a shot clock violation on a 2-2 count.

“It seems very simple,” said Nimmo. “I was in the box at 8 seconds. Usually we get a little bit more time on foul balls, maybe that was wrong, but we usually do. And he was on the mound, sorry, not in the mound, but on the rubber at 9 seconds, and I was in the box at 8 seconds, but because I wasn’t looking at the pitcher, I got it. So it looks like everything is in order. You’re slowing down the game more coming out and call that — than just letting go of the pitch.”

LOU GEHRIG DAY

Varsho, whose mother-in-law died in 2018 of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, said it was emotional to hit a home run on the third annual Lou Gehrig Day. The Hall of Fame first baseman died of ALS, now known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, on June 2, 1941.

“To be able to have a special moment, I know he’s probably taking care of me,” Varsho said.

Before the game, the Mets presented a $10,000 check to Project ALS in honor of Sarah Langs, a writer and researcher for MLB.com who announced her ALS diagnosis last fall.

Langs’ boyfriend, Matt Williams, threw a ceremonial first pitch to Mets infielder Eduardo Escobar before the trio posed for a photo.

COACHES ROOM

Blue Jays: RHP Zach Pop (strained right hamstring) pitched a perfect inning in his second rehab game with Single-A Dunedin.

Mets: C Omar Narvaez (left calf strain) went 0 for 5 for Triple-A Syracuse in his fifth game of rehab. Eppler said Narvaez is on track to return from the 60-day disabled list next week. … OF Tim Locastro (UCL torn right thumb) hopes to be back in July.

Associated Press report.