They say that April showers bring May flowers, but they’re also bringing a fresh slate of baseball for the Toronto Blue Jays.

For the first time this season, the Blue Jays will be facing some familiar teams, such as the Tigers, Orioles, Yankees, Rays, and Pirates. Let’s take a look at a few hitters – some familiar, some not – that the Blue Jays will have their hands full with in May.

McGonigle, one of baseball’s top prospects, has gotten off to an excellent start to his major league career, and the Blue Jays will be paying the Tigers a visit in mid-May.

McGonigle has played in 30 games this season, slashing .333/.420/.518 with two homers, 13 RBIs, two triples, and 12 doubles. His batting average is third-best in the American League, and his 38 hits have him tied in a three-way race for second. At just 21 years of age, the Tigers recently decided to sign him to an eight-year, $150 million contract extension that will last through the 2034 season.

The season is still very young and there will be plenty of time for McGonigle to make adjustments to what opposing pitchers will throw at him, but he’s been immune to any polarizing splits versus left- and right-handed pitchers, although his numbers against righties are almost 100 points higher. The Blue Jays will also need to make sure they are alert from the get-go should McGonigle still be batting leadoff; he’s hitting .500 as the first batter of the game.

This technically won’t be the first time that Toronto has seen McGonigle in game action. He logged nine plate appearances against the Blue Jays in Spring Training, not recording a hit, drawing two walks, and striking out three times. Although many of those plate appearances came against pitchers that McGonigle won’t see in May, his two walks came against Louis Varland and Tommy Nance.

This is an obvious one, but I won’t leave him off. The concept of how the Blue Jays pitch Judge is a talking point before and after the Blue Jays and Yankees face off more often than not.

One of the league’s most prolific hitters of this decade is off to another great start to the season. Although the batting average has taken a dip since last season, the slugging is still there. Through 31 games, Judge is hitting .252/.381/.622 with 12 home runs, 20 RBIs, and 5 doubles. His home run total is tied with Munetaka Murakami of the White Sox for an MLB-best, and his OPS was third-highest up until last night.

The Blue Jays intentionally walked Aaron Judge nine times last season between the regular season and the postseason, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see John Schneider implement similar strategies once again. Let the likes of Jazz Chisholm, Ben Rice, and Cody Bellinger beat you, not Judge.

The Blue Jays won’t be seeing him as frequently anymore, but it doesn’t mean they’re rid of Brandon Lowe completely.

Acquired by the Pirates via trade during the winter, Lowe has shown plenty of slug to begin the season that, should it continue, will look closer to his 39-homer 2021 season than he’s had since then. Lowe has played in 26 games this year, hitting .245/.336/.520 with seven doubles, seven home runs, and 19 RBIs, leading the team in numerous offensive categories (including fWAR – 1.0).

Being a former Tampa Bay Ray, Lowe is no stranger to facing the Blue Jays. He’s hit 21 home runs and 56 RBIs with a .924 OPS in 73 career games against the Blue Jays, and he’s also posted a .931 OPS in 27 games at Rogers Centre.

Lowe may be crossing his fingers, hoping a Trey Yesavage start doesn’t fall during their games against the Blue Jays. Yesavage made two of his first three career starts last season against the Rays, and he struck Lowe out four times in five plate appearances.

Where is the “& Co.” coming from? Well, this series will be played in Camden Yards, which hasn’t been great to the Blue Jays in recent years. Since 2023, the Blue Jays are 6-12 when playing in Baltimore, and they’ve been outscored 116-74 in those games. There are some new faces on both sides this year, so perhaps that trend will change.

Speaking of new faces, Ward fits that description perfectly, being acquired by the Orioles from the Angels in exchange for Grayson Rodriguez last winter. He’s gotten off to a great start this season, slashing .313/.426/.455 with a home run, 11 RBIs, and 13 doubles (t-1st in MLB).

Baltimore also features Adley Rutschman, who possesses a .320/.392/.590 career slash line against the Blue Jays with 13 home runs, 39 RBIs, and 15 doubles in 50 games. He’s been splitting time at catcher with Samuel Basallo, but something tells me the Orioles will get him in the lineup one way or another when the Blue Jays come to town.

Simpson’s having a solid year at the plate for Tampa Bay, hitting .314 with a .349 OBP and 11 stolen bases. He’s a game changer on the base paths, though, and that’s where the Blue Jays will need to be on high alert.

Ranking in the 99th percentile in sprint speed, whiff rate, and strikeout rate, Simpson has been elite at putting the ball in play. When he does that, he’s putting pressure on the defense to act quickly, even if it’s on a routine ground ball. Once he’s on base, he’s a more-than-ideal candidate to go from first to third on a single or try to score from third on a shallow fly ball. Simply put, Simpson can be a run-stealer.

Winning on the margins is part of the Tampa Bay way, and an extra 90 feet that Simpson can get here or there that other players aren’t capable of obtaining could change a game.

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