Kevin Gausman is set to return to the mound on Saturday in Seattle

Here’s some good news for all of the fans who are making the trip to watch the Blue Jays play the Mariners in Seattle this weekend — Kevin Gausman is set to return to the mound.

According to Sportsnet’s Hazel Mae, Gausman will start for the Blue Jays on Saturday against the Mariners. Yusei Kikuchi will open the series on Friday and Alek Manoah will pitch the finale on Sunday.

Toronto’s ace opted out of pitching in the All-Star game in order to get some rest and he missed his first scheduled start in the second half because he was dealing with some left-side discomfort. He was supposed to start the second game of their series with the Arizona Diamondbacks but was scratched and Chris Bassitt took his place.

Gausman had a huge first half for the Blue Jays. He posted a 3.03 ERA over 19 starts and went into the break leading the American League with 153 strikeouts. The 115 2/3 innings Gausman pitched before the All-Star break has him on pace to clear 200 innings in a single season for the first time in his career so it was smart for the Blue Jays to be cautious with him.

The Mariners will enter their series with Toronto either at .500 or two games below depending on how their series finale with the Minnesota Twins goes on Thursday. How the Mariners do against the Blue Jays, who currently occupy the third Wild Card spot in the American League, could go a long way in deciding whether they buy or sell ahead of the August 1 trade deadline.