TORONTO -- Facing the awful prospect of falling down 0-3 in the American League Championship Series, the Toronto Blue Jays were behind again before they even batted. Marcus Stroman allowed 11 hits, struck out only one batter and threw a wild pitch. The Toronto bullpen allowed four runs in the ninth inning. And Troy Tulowitzki got ejected.

And yet, Game 3 still went so well for the Blue Jays that everyone in Canada had to go to bed smiling Monday night. Even those whose political party lost in the day's national election.

"It's a good day for Canada. Whether you agree or not with the [voter] decisions, at the end of the day, the Jays won, so who cares? Everyone's got to be happy," said injured Blue Jays outfielder Michael Saunders, who is from British Columbia. "This isn't just Toronto's team, it's Canada's team, so everyone has to be happy."

The fans at the game certainly were. They chanted "CUE-TO! CUE-TO!" to rattle the Kansas City Royals starter who allowed eight runs and didn't make it through the third inning. They sang "Happy Birthday" to Jose Bautista, who was celebrating his 35th birthday. They rocked the Dome with the Canadian national anthem before the game and with "Let's go, Blue Jays!" during the seventh-inning stretch.

And they watched their Blue Jays recover from two series-opening losses in Kansas City to rout the Royals 11-8 in a game that wasn't as close as the final score made it appear.

See what a difference one game can make? Especially when you win?

The Blue Jays opened the ALCS in frustrating form by getting shut out in Game 1 and blowing a 3-0 lead in the seventh inning of Game 2. But when they returned to the stadium where they have won so often this season -- 53-28 in the regular season -- and hit so well, they returned to form as the game's best offense, scoring three runs in the second inning and six in the third.

Which was important, because Stroman gave up four runs and 11 hits in 6⅓ innings, so he needed some support. He got it, at the plate and in the field.

"It's pretty special, you know what I mean?" Stroman said. "We were down 2-0. We realized that. But you couldn't tell we were down 2-0 in the clubhouse -- unbelievably confident group that we have. To go out there and to see the bats be swung like they were and see the defense play behind me?"

Second baseman Ryan Goins had a big night to make up for his costly gaffe in Game 2 when he allowed a pop fly to drop for a hit that sparked the Royals' winning rally. He also entered Game 3 with just two hits this postseason. But Monday, he singled home two runs to give the Blue Jays the lead in the second inning and also homered in the fifth.

"It was huge. That just shows you the type of person Ryan Goins is, the amount of character he has," said third baseman Josh Donaldson, who hit a two-run homer in the third inning. "I think he wanted to come out today and prove to people what kind of player he is. And he did that. The important thing about baseball is you have to be able to come out and bounce back the next day."

Center fielder Kevin Pillar scored two runs, but more importantly, he made a marvelous catch in the first inning that ranks with the one Devon White made here with his back to the plate in the 1992 World Series. Playing a little shallow, Pillar turned around when Lorenzo Cain drilled a pitch to dead center, raced back and made the grab before crashing into the wall.

"He's willing to give up his body, willing to run through that wall for us," Donaldson said. "And he's done it numerous times."

"I'm fearless," Pillar said. "Or maybe I'm just stupid."

Goins and Pillar hit at the bottom of the order but everyone else in the lineup was in great form as well, especially Tulowitzki, who slammed a huge three-run homer in the third that basically put the game out of reach. He was later ejected for complaining about a called third strike but it didn't matter because the Jays had a comfortable lead. The only player in the starting lineup who didn't score was Bautista, but he drove in one run and also got to hear the fans wish him a happy birthday.

Thanks to the victory, the Blue Jays enter Game 4 with a solid chance to even the series rather than facing the possibility of elimination. Even the losing party in the national election has to be happy about that.

"What I've realized about this team is it's so much more than Toronto and surrounding towns. It's a nation behind us and you feel that," first baseman Chris Colabello said. "When we go on the road, when we're here, on social media and TV. I don't pretend that baseball is larger than life, but if there is anything we can bring happiness to people based on what we do, that's one of the great parts of the job."