Blue Jays' schedule suggests they have a chance to make up some ground

This hasn't been the season the Toronto Blue Jays envisioned after coming within two outs of winning the 2025 World Series. Rightfully so, there were high expectations during the offseason to make a return to the championship, but this time with a different outcome. However, a plethora of injuries and poor performances from key players have derailed those plans.

The team doesn't need to wave the white flag and surrender the season just yet, though. The trade deadline is Aug. 3, which makes the next two weeks extremely important for the front office to decide whether they want to become buyers or sellers.

The Blue Jays sit dead last in the AL East, 12 games behind the Tampa Bay Rays, who lead the division. However, they are only 2.5 games back from the third Wild Card spot. It's a logjam of a situation, with four teams ahead of Toronto vying for the final spot currently held by the Seattle Mariners, but each of them, including the Mariners, has a losing record.

The Blue Jays are within an arm's length of a return to the postseason, where anything can happen. So it shows that a few smart moves at the trade deadline could give them the boost they need. Two of the remaining opponents ahead of the Blue Jays in the Wild Card race are division foes: the Boston Red Sox and the Baltimore Orioles.

Important matchups the Blue Jays can gain ground in the Wild Card race

The Blue Jays play the Red Sox seven times, and the Orioles six times, giving them a perfect opportunity to inch closer to a Wild Card spot. They have a three-game series versus two other teams slightly ahead of them in the Wild Card. They go to the Houston Astros Aug. 3-5 and host the Seattle Mariners on Aug. 28-30.

According to TJStats, using FanGraphs' projection model, the Blue Jays have the 16th-hardest remaining strength of schedule. It's also encouraging to see the rest of the AL East higher on the list with harder schedules, giving the Blue Jays an opportunity to make a second-half run.

For the Blue Jays to make a run, they’re going to need to survive a gauntlet in the first half of their remaining schedule. In these games, they face a few division leaders and teams that are closely behind. These are the matchups during the pivotal stretch:

• vs White Sox (3)
• vs Rays (4)
• at Red Sox (3)
• at Nationals (3)
• vs Cardinals (3)
• at Astros (3)
• at Cubs (1)
• at Phillies (3)
• vs Red Sox (4)
• vs Yankees (3)
• at Rays (3)
• at Yankees (3)

That's a tough group of opponents that will mostly be aggressive at the trade deadline to improve. If the Blue Jays finish the above stretch near .500, then they will have a promising look at reaching the postseason. Out of the ten remaining series, only two teams will likely be aggressive at the deadline. During the final stretch, the Blue Jays face:

• vs Royals (3)
• vs Mariners (3)
• at Guardians (3)
• at Royals (3)
• at Athletics (3)
• vs Orioles (3)
• vs Tigers (3)
• at Rangers (3)
• at Orioles (3)
• vs Reds (3)

This stretch is significantly more visually appealing. Although these matchups look favorable, winning a majority of these games will require improving their current roster in some ways. However, they don't have to be fully aggressive buyers. I detailed a route last week in which the Blue Jays could improve by trading away expiring contracts that aren't performing well but would be highly sought after by contending teams.

The team's first step is to get through the next two weeks before the trade deadline. The Blue Jays can't afford to complete the next 16 games with anything less than a .500 record if they don't want to see their postseason hopes completely disappear.

The team would get an offensive boost if they could get a massive second-half appearance from the face of the franchise, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., and Addison Barger to flip his season around when he returns from the injury list.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow