A rundown of the Blue Jays ten previous playoff runs

2025 will mark the 11th time in the Toronto Blue Jays 48 year history that they will be playing playoff baseball after clinching a playoff berth on Sunday. However, as you’ll see with this list, the Blue Jays have never won three series in a single playoff round, let alone four if they somehow slip to a wild card spot in the season's final week. 

While there have been two World Series championship titles among their previous ten appearances, there has also been much heartbreak and frustration with the Blue Jays’ October runs.

1985: Blue Jays lose ALCS to Kansas City Royals 4-3

Back when you could only get to the playoffs if you won your respective division, the Blue Jays, who came into existence nine seasons earlier, had finally broken through and claimed the top spot in the AL East finishing 99-62, still the franchise record for wins in a season. 

The Blue Jays took on the Royals (91-71) and built up a 3-1 lead. Had this been 1984 the Blue Jays would have been going to the World Series. But prior to the start of the ‘85 season, MLB decided to shift the League Championship Series to a best of seven format. The Blue Jays lost both Game Five and Game Six by just two runs in each contest, before falling in Game Seven 6-2. 

1989: Blue Jays lose ALCS to Oakland Athletics 4-1

Four years later, the Blue Jays were back in the postseason thanks in part to a mid-season coaching change where Jimmy Williams (12-24) was shown the door and Cito Gaston (77-49) took over the reins. Gaston guided the Blue Jays to an 89-73 record. 

However, they were no match for the 99-63 Oakland A’s whose leadoff man, Rickey Henderson, was an absolute beast in this series. Henderson led the team in almost every offensive category slashing .400/.609/.1000 with eight stolen bases, seven walks, no strikeouts and tied for the team lead with two home runs - the same amount as Mark McGwire and Jose Canseco combined. The Blue Jays dropped Games One and Two, took Game Three at home, before falling in the next two contests by a single run 6-5 and 4-3. 

1991: Blue Jays lose ALCS to Minnesota Twins (4-1)

As heartbreaking as 1985 was, and as underwhelming as 1989 was, 1991 really feels like the most forgettable of all of those series. Most of the faces that turned them from upstarts to contenders in the 80’s were gone, replaced by the likes of Joe Carter, Roberto Alomar, John Olerud and Devon White. The team was good, going 91-71 and winning the division handedly by seven games over the defending AL East champion Boston Red Sox. 

But they ran into a wall against the Twins (95-67). They split the first two games in Minnesota, before the Twins won 3-2 in ten innings at Skydome in Game Three and the rest of the series wasn’t really close with the Twins closing it out with 9-3 and 8-5 victories over the final two games.