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July 3 Gameday: Blue Jays face Mariners for first time since ALCS

Photo credit: © Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images

By Ryley Delaney

Jul 3, 2026, 19:45 EDTUpdated: Jul 3, 2026, 19:38 EDT

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It’s been 256 days since George Springer hit one of the biggest home runs in Toronto Blue Jays history.

Monday, October 20th, 2025. Heading into the bottom of the seventh down 3-1 in Game 7, Springer stepped up to the plate against Seattle Mariners’ pitcher Eduard Bazardo. On the second pitch of the at-bat, Springer drove the ball to left centre field and over the fence for a three-run home run, punching the Jays’ ticket to the 2025 World Series.

The 2026 season has gone much differently for the Blue Jays, entering Friday’s game with a 41-46 record, three and a half games behind the final wild card. After a 3-7 home stand, there’s little margin for error as they begin a nine-game road trip on the west coast.

There’s still hope, though. Last season, a sweep of the Mariners in Seattle got the Blue Jays back to .500 (20-20) record, and the west coast road trip in early May is seen as a turning point after a rough start. A good road trip before the All-Star break puts them right back in the race.

Starting for the Mariners on Friday evening is Luis Castillo. Aside from Game 1 in the 2022 Wild Card Series, the Jays have found success against the righty in his six regular season start. In 32.2 innings of work against the Jays, they’ve scored 17 earned runs.

Dylan Cease gets the ball for the Blue Jays. His last start on the June 27th was the quintessential Cease start, giving up four earned runs over four and two-thirds innings of work, walking five and striking out 10. Cease needs to be better on Friday.

Although Springer’s three-run home run last October won the Jays the series, he won’t be in the lineup. Instead, Nathan Lukes leads off, followed by Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Kazuma Okamoto. Daulton Varsho bats cleanup, Alejandro Kirk hits fifth, and Yohendrick Piñango bats sixth.

The bottom third of the Jays lineup consists of Ernie Clement, Sean Keys, and Andrés Giménez. Last postseason, Giménez’ two home runs came in Seattle, so let’s hope he can do the same.

Here’s the information for Friday’s series opener:

Location: Seattle, Washington

First Pitch: 10:10 PM ET

Watch/Listen: Sportsnet, SN590