August 1 Gameday: Kevin Gausman starts as Blue Jays look for third straight win
Photo credit: Brian Fluharty-Imagn Images
Aug 1, 2026, 12:55 EDT
The Toronto Blue Jays are doing just enough to make the decision surrounding the trade deadline interesting.
Following Friday night’s 3-1 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals, the Blue Jays now hold a 51-59 record and have pulled within 4.5 games of the American League’s final Wild Card spot.
According to FanGraphs, the Blue Jays still only have a 7.7% chance of making the playoffs, in large part due to the six teams that stand in their way. But with three wins in their past four games, the decision to sell isn’t as clear as it felt last week when the club found itself on a four-game losing streak.
Looking to make it three wins in a row, the Blue Jays will hand the ball to Kevin Gausman. Gausman has been subject to trade rumours over the past few weeks as the right-hander is set to be a free agent at season’s end and could net the Blue Jays a strong return due to the need for high-end starting pitching around the league.
Through 22 starts this season, Gausman is 4-10 with a 4.51 ERA and a 1.27 WHIP. The right-hander has struck out 123 batters across his 121.1 innings pitched and has allowed an opponents’ average of .253.
While Gausman has fallen on hard times as of late, highlighted by a 6.10 ERA during the month of July, the 35-year-old turned in a quality start in his most recent outing against the Boston Red Sox. Gausman went six innings and allowed three runs on five hits and struck out six.
Countering Gausman for the Cardinals will be Quinn Matthews. Matthews is the Cardinals’ No. 7-ranked prospect and will be making his MLB debut on Saturday. The 25-year-old was selected in the fourth round of the 2023 MLB draft and has turned in three strong seasons in the Cardinals’ minor-league system.
Through 19 starts in Triple-A with the Memphis Redbirds, Matthews is 5-3 with a 3.13 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP. The left-hander has struck out 111 batters across 92 innings pitched and has limited hitters to a robust .170 average.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. came oh-so-close to his first home run at Rogers Centre on Friday night. Guerrero drove a line drive 396 feet off the left-centre wall that was inches away from leaving the yard.
Guerrero is seeing the ball well as of late, having batted .385 over his past seven games, and holds a .284 average with two home runs and nine RBIs against left-handed pitching this season, setting up an interesting battle with Matthews.
Here’s how the lineups look Saturday at Rogers Centre:
Location: Rogers Centre – Toronto, Ontario
First Pitch: 3:07 PM EST
Watch/Listen: Sportsnet, SN590
Starting Pitchers
Toronto Blue Jays – Kevin Gausman: 4-10 record, 4.51 ERA, 121.2 IP, 123 SO, 35 BB
St. Louis Cardinals – Quinn Matthews: 5-3 record, 3.13 ERA, 92 IP, 111 SO, 52 BB (Triple-A statistics)
Lineups:
Blue Jays:
- Luis Urías – 2B
- Vladimir Guerrero Jr. – 1B
- Kazuma Okamoto – 3B
- George Springer – DH
- Alejandro Kirk – C
- Daulton Varsho – CF
- Ernie Clement – SS
- Myles Straw – RF
- Davis Schneider – LF
Cardinals:
- JJ Wetherholt– 2B
- Jordan Walker – RF
- Alec Burleson – 1B
- Iván Herrera – DH
- Lars Nootbaar – LF
- Masyn Winn – SS
- Nathan Church – CF
- Blaze Jordan – 3B
- Jimmy Crooks – C
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