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July 5 Gameday: Trey Yesavage starts for Blue Jays in rubber match against Mariners

Photo credit: © Stephen Brashear-Imagn Images

By Tristan Morgan

Jul 5, 2026, 16:30 EDTUpdated: Jul 5, 2026, 16:29 EDT

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Twenty-four hours can change a lot in this league, and the Toronto Blue Jays found that out the hard way.

After Friday’s tidy 2-0 shutout behind a dominant Dylan Cease, the Jays ran into a buzzsaw on Saturday, managing just one hit off Logan Gilbert in an 11-0 blowout that dropped them to 42-47 and evened the series at a game apiece. Now the Blue Jays send Trey Yesavage to the mound against the Seattle Mariners with the rubber match on the line.

Yesavage takes the ball for his 13th start of the season, carrying a 3.34 ERA with 61 strikeouts and a 1.10 WHIP. On the road, he’s been even better, hosting a 2.22 ERA this season. The advanced numbers back up the surface-level ones as well, with the right-hander sitting in the 80th percentile in expected ERA and the 91st percentile in expected batting average against, a profile that shows Yesavage’s early success in MLB and that his 66-degree arm angle is here to stay.

Rob Friedman

@PitchingNinja

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Trey Yesavage, Wicked 84mph Splitter. 🤢

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6:10 PM · Jun 18, 2026

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Standing across from him is Emerson Hancock, who owns a 3.47 ERA with 87 strikeouts in his own right. Hancock’s season has trended the wrong way lately, with his ERA climbing from 2.78 at the end of May to its current mark after a couple of rough outings that saw him surrender six runs against Washington and five against Boston.

Unlike Yesavage, his underlying numbers lag behind, with Hancock sitting in just the 36th percentile in expected ERA and the 32nd in expected batting average against, suggesting his recent regression could continue this afternoon.

The Mariners originally had George Kirby lined up for this series finale, but they scrapped their planned piggyback between Gilbert and Hancock, opting to let Gilbert start Saturday on his own and hand the ball to Hancock today, pushing Kirby back to Monday instead. It’s a small shuffle, but it speaks to a bigger situation brewing in Seattle.

With six healthy starters between Gilbert, Bryan Woo, Kirby, Luis Castillo, Hancock and Bryce Miller, the Mariners have been operating on an unofficial six-man rotation all season, and with the trade deadline approaching on August 3rd, that depth has put Seattle in a position to shop a starter for the right-handed bat they’ve been missing all season.

Saturday’s loss was about as lopsided as it gets. Gilbert was nearly perfect through five innings, flirting with the 1,000 career strikeout milestone before finishing with seven punchouts across 7.1 innings while allowing just the one hit and no walks.

Randy Arozarena blew the game open with a grand slam in a five-run second, and Cal Raleigh and Dominic Canzone each added homers of their own. Shane Bieber, making just his third start back from elbow inflammation, was tagged for seven runs on six hits across four-plus innings, and the bullpen only piled on from there, as Adam Macko and Tommy Nance combined to let in another four runs in two innings.

The Blue Jays’ biggest issue offensively continues to be hitting with runners in scoring position. Entering late June, they ranked last in MLB in both OPS (.667) and wRC+ (82) in those situations, while hitting just .192 with two outs and RISP. More than a lack of talent, the Blue Jays have simply been a mixed bag offensively. Emerson has an elite 6.1% walk rate and 1.05 WHIP on the season, so this evening will be a true test for the Blue Jays on their ability to drive runners in.

Speaking of offence, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was voted in as the American League’s starting first baseman for the sixth straight year this past weekend, but shortly after the announcement, he revealed he’ll decline the invitation to focus on his recovery and the second half of the season, pointing to the lower back discomfort that’s lingered since late spring.

Shi Davidi

@ShiDavidi

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Vladimir Guerrero Jr., elected to start at 1B for the AL, said he won't be going to ASG to recuperate over the break. He's been playing through lower back issues for nearly a month. He said he's very grateful to fans who voted for him and that's "one of the hardest parts of not Show more

Toronto Blue Jays

@BlueJays

Your American League starter at 1B ⭐️ Vladdy's a six-time All-Star! #BlueJays50

12:03 AM · Jul 5, 2026

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Guerrero Jr. is batting .265 with four home runs and 35 RBI through 84 games, a career-low OPS at .692, so the declined invitation seems reasonable from the big-league veteran. Guerrero went 0-for-3 with a walk in Saturday’s loss and likely will remain in the lineup for the series finale, but the back discomfort is something the team will be keeping a firm eye on throughout this road trip.

With Toronto sitting three games back of the final AL Wild Card spot, this nine-game road trip will go a long way toward defining where the Blue Jays stand in the second half. A series win in Seattle this afternoon would be exactly the kind of statement Toronto needs before carrying that momentum into San Francisco, and with the way this season has gone, there’s little room left for stumbles like Saturday’s with just 73 games remaining in the season.

Location: Seattle, WA (T-Mobile Park)
First Pitch: 5:00 PM ET
Watch/Listen: Sportsnet One, SN590

Starting Pitchers

Toronto Blue Jays – Trey Yesavage: 4-3 record, 3.34 ERA, 67.1 IP, 61 SO, 30 BB
Seattle Mariners – Emerson Hancock: 5-4, 3.47 ERA, 90.2 IP, 87 SO, 22 BB