Betting

Navigation

Jays News

Editorials

Shows

Nation Sites

The Nation Network

Series Preview: Blue Jays open final road trip of July with series against Red Sox at Fenway Park

Photo credit: © Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images

By Tristan Morgan

Jul 24, 2026, 15:00 EDTUpdated: Jul 24, 2026, 14:55 EDT

Comments

The Toronto Blue Jays head into Fenway Park to face the Boston Red Sox on Friday night still searching for answers after a second-half collapse, while the Red Sox have completely flipped their season around and reinserted themselves into a pennant chase.

The Blue Jays enter this three-game set coming off a frustrating stretch to start the second half. Toronto salvaged its final game against Tampa Bay on Thursday with a 3-1 victory, snapping a four-game losing streak, but the offensive concerns remain as the club has scored three runs or fewer in six consecutive games.

Meanwhile, Boston has transformed from a team buried in the AL East standings into one of baseball’s hottest clubs. The last time these two teams met, the Red Sox were 29-43 and appeared destined to sell at the deadline. Just over a month later, Boston has climbed all the way back, riding a franchise-record 15-game winning streak during its turnaround and now sits in the thick of the Wild Card race.

After last year’s magical run, the August 3 trade deadline looms. With the team falling out of contention, general manager Ross Atkins will have difficult decisions ahead. But before those decisions arrive, Toronto has nine games on this road trip to change the conversation.

Friday’s opener should be a fun one as Trey Yesavage gets the ball for Toronto after continuing to prove all season that he belongs as a key piece of the Blue Jays’ future. The rookie right-hander enters with a 3.78 ERA and 78 strikeouts across 81 innings. His ability to limit quality contact has remained his biggest strength, holding opposing hitters to an elite .197 expected batting average.

The Red Sox counter with Patrick Sandoval, who is making just his third start of the season as he continues to work his way back from Tommy John surgery. After missing nearly two seasons, Sandoval’s return has been a mixed bag. The left-hander allowed just one earned run in his Red Sox debut against the White Sox before struggling in his most recent outing, allowing five runs (four earned) against the Tampa Bay Rays. Despite those results, Sandoval’s velocity has returned to its pre-injury levels and he has nearly a 5:1 K/BB ratio through his first two starts.

Saturday’s matchup is the marquee pitching duel of the weekend. Dylan Cease has been everything Toronto hoped for when the team acquired him, emerging as the ace of a rotation that has been battered by injuries. The right-hander enters with a 2.67 ERA and 155 strikeouts, and has been a pitcher who needs no introduction. His 36.3 strikeout rate and 35.3 whiff rate should do all the talking this weekend.

Standing across from him will be veteran Sonny Gray, who has also been one of the best pitchers in the American League. Gray enters with a 2.48 ERA, though his expected ERA sits at 3.64. The 36-year-old has been commanding the strike zone all year with a 6.9 walk rate and should be attacking Blue Jays hitters early.

Sunday’s finale could carry the biggest storyline and potentially the most emotional one. Kevin Gausman is scheduled to make the start, but it could be his final appearance in a Blue Jays uniform before the trade deadline.

The veteran right-hander has been one of Toronto’s most consistent pitchers since arriving in 2022, carrying a 3.60 ERA in his time with Toronto, but with the team trending towards selling, the Blue Jays have begun listening to offers on the 35-year-old. This season, Gausman hasn’t met his previous highs, posting just a 4.51 ERA with his fastball-splitter combo, losing about one mph since last season.

On the other side, the Red Sox are projected to roll out rookie Payton Tolle. The southpaw has been a firecracker for Boston this season, posting a 3.31 ERA with stellar underlying numbers. The 23-year-old has a 34.3 chase rate across his four-pitch mix while holding opposing hitters to a .204 expected batting average. The Blue Jays’ offence this season has had a tendency to chase, chasing about 33.5% of the time, above league average. They’ll have to keep their composure to get to Tolle.

Player to Watch: Willson Contreras

If there is one hitter capable of changing this series, it is Boston’s veteran slugger Willson Contreras.

After joining the Red Sox, Contreras has become one of the biggest surprises in the American League. The 34-year-old has provided middle-of-the-order production, entering the series hitting .292 with 22 home runs, 66 RBIs and a .941 OPS.

Over the last month, Contreras has been one of the hottest hitters in baseball, hitting six home runs with 21 RBIs while consistently finding ways to do damage every time he steps to the plate.

Contreras is well on his way to a career season, and there’s nothing underlying that can prevent him from reaching it. The slugger has a .393 expected wOBA, .529 expected SLG, paired with one of the fastest bat speeds in MLB, which makes him by far the most dangerous hitter on this Red Sox squad, and in the middle of a hot streak, the Blue Jays’ pitching staff might want to work around him to avoid adding to his 22 home runs.

For the Blue Jays, this series is the final opportunity to prove the season still has life before the trade deadline forces the organization to sell. Sitting at 47-56, with just a 9.2% chance to make the postseason per FanGraphs, for some, this season is already a lost cause with over two months remaining. A turnaround, if it were to miraculously ever come, needs to steal wins from division rivals, and the Red Sox would be a great place to start on a potential long road back to contention.

Quick Hits

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has historically dominated Fenway Park, entering the series with a career .342/.415/.589 slash line and 12 home runs in Boston across 56 games.
The Blue Jays swept the Red Sox in their last three-game meeting at Fenway Park from June 16–18, outscoring Boston 13-4 across the weekend.
The Blue Jays’ bullpen remains a bright spot despite its heavy usage, ranking 11th with a 3.72 ERA, though the Red Sox’s bullpen has been the best in MLB with a 3.02 ERA.
Despite their strong overall record, the Red Sox have actually fared better on the road (29-21) than at Fenway Park, where they hold a sub-.500 record of 23-28.