Blue Jays now hold the top Wild Card spot, and yes that’s a good thing

After the Blue Jays beat the Rays on Tuesday, and the Mariners lost a late game to Atlanta, it all adds up to the Jays moving into the top Wild Card spot.

The standings could certainly flip-flop a never of times before the regular season is over, especially among the three teams looking like they’ll qualify in Wild Card positions. The Blue Jays entered yesterday’s schedule just 0.5 games back of both Tampa Bay and Seattle, but with a pair of losses for their competition the Jays are now on top, with the other two half a game behind.

While it only seems natural that this is a positive development for the Blue Jays, there are some fans that would tell you they’d rather see this team finish in the last Wild Card spot. While I can understand the logic, I’m not a subscriber to that idea at all.

Basically the thinking is that the 6th seed will have an easier road to the World Series. That starts with a first round matchup against whichever team comes out of the AL Central, and as of this writing that would be the Cleveland Guardians. The White Sox could still end up winning the division as they’re only 3.0 games back, and the Twins aren’t out of it yet with just 5.0 games separating them from the Guardians. None of those teams are easy pickings by any means, but I do understand the perception that it could be a more favourable opponent than Seattle or Tampa Bay for the first round.

The second enticing part of finishing 6th would be a potential second round matchup against the Yankees rather than the Astros. While I agree that New York is the more vulnerable team, especially right now, it’s still not enough for me to hope for anything but the top seed. I mean, I’m still hoping that the Jays can somehow make up 5.5 games on the Yankees for the AL East, so I’m not even remotely ready to concede any positioning in the Wild Card.

To me, a home playoff series trumps all, and even if I ultimately want to see them as World Series champions, I’d like to see this group start by winning a playoff series. In my mind, the best chance to do that is at home, and as the 4th seed they would have the opportunity to host the entire three-game series. I really believe that this young and talented team thrives on momentum, and having a home crowd behind them is a legitimate boost.

More importantly, I feel like Blue Jays fans deserve a home playoff series after everything that’s happened over the last few years. There was a long absence without a MLB game north of the border, and I refuse to root for anything other than rewarding the fans for their patience. Plus, who wouldn’t love a little playoff controversy if one of the opposing players had to sit out of the opening round?

All joking aside, I can understand the argument for wanting the Blue Jays to finish in the last Wild Card spot, but as for me, I’ll be rooting for the highest finish possible. Well okay, maybe fifth would be worse than sixth.