If Blue Jays are a serious postseason contender, this needs to happen in September

2025 has been a turnaround season that not many would've predicted from the Toronto Blue Jays. As August ended yesterday, the Blue Jays have a 79-58 record and head into the final month of the regular season in first place in the American League East Division.

But now the division and postseason races will heat up even more and the Blue Jays need to do something during the month of September to show they are a serious contender.

Series wins against top teams in September need to happen for Toronto to show they're a serious contender

For the Blue Jays' final August series against the Milwaukee Brewers, the team lost two of the three games. The Brewers headed into the series with the best record in the MLB, and showed why they're the best team in baseball, with their pitching outlasting the Blue Jays in two of those contests.

If the Blue Jays are going to show that they're a serious postseason contender in 2025, then the team needs to start beating the top teams in the MLB who are competing for a shot at the World Series. In September, the Blue Jays have crucial series against three postseason teams as of the morning of Sept. 1.

Who and when the Blue Jays play a team currently in 2025 postseason picture in September:

Sept 5-7 @ New York Yankees
Sept. 9-11 vs Houston Astros
Sept. 23-25 vs Boston Red Sox

Along with having a series against three teams currently in the 2025 postseason, the Blue Jays also have a three-game series against the Cincinnati Reds, Baltimore Orioles and Kansas City Royals, as well as having seven games against the Tampa Bay Rays for the rest of the September schedule.

The Royals aren't too far out of the postseason picture, sitting three games behind the Seattle Mariners for the AL's third Wild Card spot, while the Reds are in the same spot in the National League, four games back behind the Mets for the NL's third Wild Card spot. The Blue Jays can't afford to lose against teams that aren't in a postseason spot. Not only would it cost them some ground in the standings, but it could also be a signal that they aren't ready to compete when the games move into October.

The AL East Division race has gotten tighter as September has arrived. The Yankees are three games behind the Blue Jays for the division lead, and the Red Sox are three-and-a-half games behind Toronto. With three games against each team for the Blue Jays, all six games will be pivotal to gain ground on both teams.

The Astros are also chasing the Blue Jays to avoid playing in the Wild Card series. Currently, the Astros are four games behind the Blue Jays for the bye to open the postseason. The series between the two teams next week in Toronto will be pivotal.