AL Wild Card race update: Blue Jays elimination number down to two
Photo credit: © Chris Jones-Imagn Images
Sep 22, 2026, 16:45 EDTUpdated: Sep 22, 2026, 16:34 EDT
The Toronto Blue Jays’ playoff hopes are on thin ice.
Simply put, the last four days have not gone their way, both on the field and in the out of town scoreboard. Entering Arlington down just two games, the Blue Jays now sit three and a half games behind the Chicago White Sox with just five games to play. There’s little margin for error and they’ll need a ton of help.
Let’s take a look at what went on in the American League wild card race this past weekend.
Out of town scoreboard for September 18th, 19th, 20th, and 21st
The Blue Jays can’t make the playoffs if they don’t win their games, and they’ve just failed to do that this past week or so. On Friday, they fell 7-1 to the Texas Rangers in what will likely end up being Dylan Cease’s final start of the season. The story of this game were the walks and the errors, along with a lethargic offence.
Saturday’s game didn’t go much better, as José Soriano gave up six runs (five earned) over five innings of work, though he struck out eight. After mustering just five hits in the series opener, the Jays totalled six hits in this game in what turned out to be a 6-2 loss.
They escaped Arlington with a win in the series finale at least, as the Jays managed to win that game 7-2. The bullpen day went swimmingly, with Spencer Miles being the big standout on the mound. Brett Bateman scored three of the Jays’ seven runs, and Nathan Lukes went 2-3 with a walk. Sean Keys, Bateman, Charles McAdoo, and Ernie Clement each hit a double.
That said, all momentum was halted in a 4-3 loss to the Baltimore Orioles on Monday. Things started off well, as the Jays scored three runs in the top of the first. But the Orioles whittled away at the lead before Pete Alonso hit a two-run home run in the bottom of the eighth, turning a 3-2 deficit into a 4-3 lead.
The Blue Jays return to action on Tuesday in a doubleheader. As for the Rangers, they hold the division thanks to a 78-78 record, a game ahead of the Astros, and face the New York Mets beginning on Tuesday.
Going 1-3 over a four-game stretch in a playoff race hinders a team’s ability to make up games, but the out of town scoreboard didn’t help all that much either. The Cleveland Guardians have gotten hot again, winning their last five games, including three against the Athletics over the weekend.
Down 3-0 early in Friday’s game, the Guardians tied it in the fourth, then added two more runs over the next two innings in a 5-3 victory. The Athletics picked up a first inning lead in Saturday’s game as well, but the Guardians hung a five spot in the bottom of the first, then another one in the bottom of the third in a 12-6 victory. From a high-scoring game on Saturday to a low-scoring game on Sunday, as the Guardians defeated the Athletics 1-0 on Sunday.
As it stands, the Guardians lead the American League Central with a 81-75 record, a game over the White Sox for the division lead. They’ll travel to Boston for a three-game series to start their week.
Those White Sox played the Detroit Tigers over the weekend, dropping the series opener 11-8. Up 8-2 heading into the fifth, the White Sox allowed three runs in the fifth, one in the sixth, and five in the eighth in a massive comeback loss. Unfortunately, that turned out to be their lone loss this series, as they picked up a 3-1 victory on Saturday and an 8-1 victory on Sunday.
The White Sox are the team that the Blue Jays are chasing, as they hold the final wild card spot with a three and a half game cushion. It’s essentially a four and a half game cushion, as they hold the tiebreaker over the Blue Jays. The White Sox hit the road to take on the Kansas City Royals to begin their week.
Like the Blue Jays, the Astros are on the outside looking in thanks to a sweep at the hands of the Atlanta Braves this weekend. On Friday, they fell 6-2 to the 2021 World Series champions thanks to four late runs. Saturday’s game had a similar score, with the Astros ultimately losing 6-3 to six late runs, including four in the top of the seventh. On Sunday, the Braves put up another four-spot, with all four of their runs coming in the six, winning 4-2.
The Astros end their season with two games against the Seattle Mariners, before taking on the Athletics for four games beginning on Thursday.
Also sitting on the outside looking in are the Orioles, who defeated the Blue Jays 4-3 on Monday to move to four and a half games behind the White Sox for the final wild card spot. They didn’t have a great weekend series against the Milwaukee Brewers, falling 6-5 on Friday, 1-0 on Saturday, and 3-0 on Sunday.
Cynthia Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Blue Jays Nation, DFOEdmonton, and DFOCalgary. She can be followed on Twitter @CynthiaRDelaney.
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