Blue Jays AL East Recap: Make or Break Time

Each week, Jays Journal will take a look at the bigger picture of the American League East to help frame not only where the Blue Jays are in the standings, but why they are there.

New York Yankees: 38-29
Boston Red Sox 39-30
Tampa Bay Rays: 37-35
Baltimore Orioles: 34-34
Toronto Blue Jays: 33-35

The Blue Jays once again failed to break through to a winning record. However, a down week by the Yankees leaves them only 5.5 games out of first. They are also only two games outside of Wild Card contention. However, they would need to leapfrog six teams to get there. Toronto starters were generally ineffective across the week, despite J.A Happ looking like his old self at the end of the week. Blue Jays’ bats were also silent most of the week, before breaking out for seven runs in Sunday nights win. Toronto’s pen has once again shown how capable they are, and will only get better if Aaron Sanchez can stick to the rotation when he returns soon.

The team had more bad luck losing Eziquiel Carrera to the DL, but Steve Pearce was activated to take over in left. In his return, the Blue Jays have gotten a small glimpse of what he has to offer offensively. The next few weeks will give the Blue Jays the chance to decide their fate. If they can win series’ against the Texas Rangers and Kansas City Royals this week, they will edge closer to Wild Card contention. If they can manage a winning record against these foes, they’ll get the Orioles and Red Sox in a chance to gain further ground in the East. The Blue Jays may end up looking like sellers if they can’t manage a winning record.

Final Takeaway:

Toronto has arrived at the time to do or die. The foreseeable future features strong opponents, and more mediocre play won’t  cut it.