The Blue Jays have oscillated between 99% and 100% in securing a playoff spot as of late, and their chance of a division win has fluctuated between 68% to 70%, showcasing the toughness of the September stretch. This is aided by having to face a gauntlet of AL East teams through the next few weeks, even if they hold a few key tiebreakers. Toronto still has its fate in its control, and it can do so by winning as many games as possible for the rest of the month to ensure other teams are removed from the equation.

However, getting some help from other teams would help make their case for securing a good playoff spot. These four teams could help the Blue Jays to separate themselves from their division rivals:

The Athletics are facing the Boston Red Sox twice in September for a total of six games and will also face off against the Houston Astros for a three-game set before the season’s end.

While recent memory hasn’t been kind to the AL West squad, the Athletics now have younger talents like Lawrence Butler, Nick Kurtz and Tyler Soderstrom paired with a seasoned veteran like Brent Rooker to help balance out the lineup. This combination has effectively turned them into a pesky bad team to beat. The Athletics’ pitching may have gotten a bit worse after the trade deadline, mostly due to Mason Miller and JP Sears’ departure, but this team finds a way to score against its opposing pitching staff. The A’s might be dead last in their division, but their 66-78 record is on track with the Orioles this season, and they could pass the Los Angeles Angels before the season’s end.

Should the Athletics win at least one of the series against Boston, that will effectively drop the Red Sox from division contention altogether. The goal for the Athletics is simple: don’t get swept by the Boston Red Sox or try to win at least one series. The Athletics are also slated to face the Houston Astros and Kansas City Royals, who are in the thick of the playoff chase. Winning a series against either of those teams wouldn’t hurt either for the Blue Jays’ playoff picture when it comes to the Wild Card and the Astros trying to secure their division as well.

The Baltimore Orioles will be the worst nemesis when the Blue Jays face them next weekend, but the Orioles have some important games against the New York Yankees (seven games; two series) and Tampa Bay Rays coming up in September as well.

Whenever the Orioles are facing these AL East division rivals, the Blue Jays will benefit if Baltimore can find a way to secure a series victory over either the Yankees or Rays, who are making a comeback in the AL East and Wild Card standings.

The Orioles may be an underwhelming team this year, but their talent level is still strong, with young position player talents like Colton Cowser, Dylan Beavers, Gunnar Henderson, Jackson Holliday, Adley Rutschman (IL), Samuel Basallo, and Jordan Westburg. The only reason this team wasn’t as good was because of untimely injuries, along with mediocre starting pitching at the beginning of the season, which means that they still have the potential to become even better in the years to come. Baltimore has turned Trevor Rogers into an ace, and the offence has found ways to be productive at times, which can be scary for any opponents, even in this disappointing season. It’s a wild concept to be cheering on the Orioles, but the Blue Jays may not have a choice if things do come down to the wire.

The Chicago White Sox have been on a tear recently and even recorded a six-game win streak while winning seven of their last ten games. That’s not a bad development for the Blue Jays because they will face the Tampa Bay Rays and the New York Yankees this month. The White Sox aren’t the laughing stock team anymore; the Colorado Rockies took that mantle from them sometime ago, and that has to work in the Blue Jays’ favour if they want to create more distance from their division rivals.

The White Sox have a good core of young players like Chase Meidroth, Colson Montgomery, Edgar Quero, Shane Smith, Kyle Teel and Mike Vasil, which is why facing this team hasn’t been the easiest for some teams. The Blue Jays previously lost a series against the more resilient White Sox team earlier this season, and now they are in a position where they have to rely on Chicago’s peskiness to conquer their AL playoff contenders.

Toronto has to hope that the White Sox can maintain some semblance of their red-hot streak when they face their division rivals.

The Minnesota Twins had an unfortunate turn of events this year, despite a 13-game win streak that gave the fan base hope for another great season. The team is worse now after trading away 11 core players, but they aren’t entirely unsalvageable as a group down the stretch.

The Twins have veterans Byron Buxton, Pablo Lopez and Joe Ryan still in the mix. They also have intriguing players like Mick Abel, Taj Bradley, Luke Keaschall, Edouard Julien, Brooks Lee, Royce Lewis and Matt Wallner to look upon. Their lineup can be a nightmare to get through, especially with home run powers from Lewis and Wallner.

Minnesota’s pitching will be the weakest point as they departed with many talents from top to bottom at this trade deadline, but if the Twins find ways to slug and play good small ball against better teams, they can still prevent their opponents from securing a sweep or a series win. Winning a series against the Yankees directly helps the Blue Jays, while taking one or two away from the Texas Rangers helps keep the AL West club away in the Wild Card standings. The direct impact is more towards the Yankees than anything, but a strong finish helps the Jays in a few other facets if they fall from the top spot in the AL East.