°Õ³ó±ðÌýBlue JaysÌýare toiling through one of their lowest points of the season and the outlook in the American League East might be about to get a whole lot worse before it gets any better.
After dropping a series to the lowly Los Angeles Angels, the Jays have been penalized with a matchup against the Seattle Mariners. These aren’t the Mariners of old either — they have been transformed into a much more effective group.
The last time these two teams played each other, the Mariners took two of the three games at Rogers Centre from April 18-20. The matchup was billed as a potential sneak peak at October between a pair of fringe wild card rivals. Since then, only one has looked like a legitimate contender.
The two victories in º£½ÇÉçÇø¹ÙÍøgave the Mariners their third consecutive series victory and they went on to win six more. Since starting the year 3-7, the Mariners have gone 19-7 to secure a three-game lead in their division. They are the hottest team in the AL alongside the Kansas City Royals who have gone 14-2 since April 20.
Meanwhile, the Jays entered Thursday’s finale against the Los Angeles Angels havingÌýlostÌýfourÌýconsecutive games. After opening the year with a respectable 12-9 record, manager John Schneider’s squad has gone 4-11. Their only saving grace is that division-rival Tampa Bay has been just as bad and the Baltimore Orioles have been even worse.
Perhaps the most surprising aspect of the Mariners’ recent tear has been their lineup. This was a team — like the Jays — that prioritized run prevention over run production. The strength of Seattle for the past several years was pitching and defence, and this season was expected to be more of the same with an offence that lacked star power.
Except that hasn’t been the case at all. The Mariners are averagingÌý, which ranks fifth in the majors. They’ve been even better this month with an average of 5.5. Contrast that with theÌýoffensively deficient Jays, who rank 25th with 3.53 runs per game. The number this month has only been marginally better at 3.83.
The Mariners have been the vastly superior team in virtually every offensive category. They rank second in the majors with a .340 on-base percentage and they’re fourth with 51 homers. The Jays rank 21st with a .310 OBP and no team in baseball has hit fewer home runs than their 25.
Comparing these two teams right now almost doesn’t seem fair, but in the spring they were supposed to be similar. Last year, the Mariners averaged 4.17 runs per game while the Jays were close behind at 4.14. Since then, one team rose to the top of the majors and the other plummeted to the bottom.
The Mariners are achieving success via contributions from a wide variety of players. Catcher — and notorious Jay killer —ÌýCal RaleighÌýhas led the way with another all-star calibre season but he’s one of eight Mariners regulars with an on-base plus slugging percentage above .700. The Jays have two —ÌýGeorge SpringerÌý(.925) andÌýVladimir Guerrero Jr.Ìý(.791).
It’s not going to help the Jays’ cause that two of their top starting pitchers — Jose Berrios and Chris Bassitt — won’t be available for this series. VeteranÌýKevin GausmanÌýis expected to start the opener, but after that it will beÌýBowden FrancisÌýandÌýJose Urena. Francis has allowed 11 runs over his last 7 1/3 innings while Urena was picked off the scrap heap barely a week ago.
This has the potential to be ugly, but then again, how much uglier can it get? The Angels entered this week’s matchup against the Jays having won two of their previous 12 games and that didn’t stop them from taking the first two from Toronto. Since mid-April, the only series victory the Jays had was against the Boston Red Sox.
Through 36 games, the Jays have the same 16-20 record they did a year ago. That 2024 team never got back to .500 before eventually becoming sellers at the July trade deadline and finishing the season in last place. The only difference this year is that the Jays are 4.5 games back of first, vs. last year when the deficit was already 7.5.
From top to bottom, this is the worst the AL East has looked in recent memory. Entering Thursday, the New York Yankees were the only team above .500 and all three wild card holders could be found outside the division. It might be easier to make the playoffs in the East than ever before and yet somehow the Jays still find themselves under water with a $250-million (U.S.) payroll.
If the Jays intend on putting up a fight this season, it had better start soon. However, based on the way these two teams have been playing lately, that sudden turnaround seems unlikely to begin this weekend.
To join the conversation set a first and last name in your user profile.
Sign in or register for free to join the Conversation