With just over two weeks left in the regular season, the Toronto Blue Jays are running out of time to continue spiralling against teams below them in the Wild Card hunt.

After a series loss to the Athletics, Toronto dropped the first of a three-game set last night to Baltimore; something they cannot afford to repeat going forward if they want any chance of October baseball.

Friday got off to a tough start with Dylan Beavers hitting a leadoff home run against Max Scherzer, before the Orioles added five more runs in the second inning; a lead they never relinquished. Overall, Scherzer finished with five innings pitched, six earned runs, one walk and three strikeouts. Braydon Fisher was the only other Blue Jay to allow a run when Coby Mayo took him deep for a solo shot in the seventh inning to give Baltimore their seventh and final run.

Toronto’s offence was weak against former Jay Chris Bassitt, besides a Kazuma Okamoto solo home run in the fourth inning. It wasn’t until the ninth inning that the Blue Jays started showing signs of fight, when Brett Bateman connected for his first career Major League home run, bringing the score to 7-4. The team couldn’t rally any further and eventually picked up their second straight loss. 1-10 with RISP just won’t cut it in a postseason race.

The Guardians were able to come back against the Twins Friday night, meaning the Jays are now two games out of the final Wild Card spot in the American League, though they hold the tie-breaker with Cleveland. With a 73-75 record and a limping offence, Toronto can’t rely on Cleveland losing to squeak into the playoffs. They will need to prove an ability to rack up wins and do so quickly.

Spencer Miles gets the ball for the Blue Jays in game two of this series, with a goal in mind to throw between 40-45 pitches. Given his stellar rookie season and vast arsenal of pitches, the prospect of Miles as a starting pitcher is certainly intriguing; something the Blue Jays may look to exploit down the stretch. Thus far, the Rule 5 draft pick has a 2.77 ERA across 87.2 innings pitched.

Miles has performed better in the bullpen, but with Shane Bieber’s status unknown and Trey Yesavage likely not having enough time to build up to a starter’s workload, the team may turn to Miles and his dynamic sinker/curveball combination to function as a fourth starter for the final few weeks of the season. Spencer Arrighetti is expected to throw the bulk of the innings today and is seeking his first win as a Blue Jay.

Location: Rogers Centre – Toronto, Ontario

First Pitch: 7:07 p.m. ET

Watch/Listen: Sportsnet One, SN590

Toronto Blue Jays – Spencer Miles: 6-2 record, 2.77 ERA, 87.2 IP, 81 SO, 21 BB

Baltimore Orioles – Kyle Bradish: 7-13 record, 3.91 ERA, 152 IP, 140 SO, 68 BB