Toronto Blue Jays vs. Cleveland Guardians series predictions: 3 key players to watch, June 24-26

What started off as a promising homestand for the Toronto Blue Jays turned into a letdown when they dropped two of three against the basement dwelling Chicago White Sox. As a result, the Blue Jays now head into Cleveland with a modest 41-36 record to start a three-game set against the Guardians. The Guardians, on the other hand, have won their past two games and four of their past six to climb right back into the American League Wild Card race.

3 key players to watch in Toronto Blue Jays vs. Cleveland Guardians series

José Ramírez, Cleveland Guardians

Ever since star third baseman José Ramírez debuted he has made himself the long-time nemesis of the Blue Jays. Over the past decade he's hit a solid .276, with a .777 OPS, along with 36 runs scored, nine home runs, 34 RBIs and 12 stolen bases in 58 career encounters between the two clubs. Toronto will need to find a way to neutralize the six-time All-Star to have any chance of winning.

This season, the All-Star bound Ramírez is amidst another stellar campaign, compiling a .323 average and a .910 OPS, which tops the league among third baseman, with 43 runs scored, 13 home runs and 36 RBIs in 74 games played.  He has also been a menace on the basepaths, with 20 steals already on the season so Torontos’ catchers will need to be on their toes.

Ernie Clement, Toronto Blue Jays

Aaron Judge-like or not, Blue Jays infielder Ernie Clement has been one of the team’s hottest hitters over the past few weeks, making everyone quickly forget about his abysmal start to the year. For someone that found his average constantly hovering near the Mendoza Line to start the season, Clement has now managed to propel it above the .300 mark this past week to .307, along with a solid .759 OPS, 32 runs scored, four home runs and 18 RBIs for the season.

More importantly, his bat had been blazing this past week, amassing a .448 average and .931 OPS over that time frame. Clement will look to continue his momentum to finish off his eventful month of June, starting with the Guardians on Tuesday.

Max Scherzer, Toronto Blue Jays

The Jays made a high-risk but potential high-reward move this past offseason in signing three-time Cy Young winner Max Scherzer to boost their starting rotation for 2025. However, he came with previous injury issues which have flared up in his pitching thumb after just one apperance this season for Toronto.

Now finally healthy and ready to go for this series, Toronto will get to see if the eight-time All-Star can finally deliver the goods that everyone has been waiting for. But despite a solid 9-5 career record against the Guardians, Scherzer has actually looked more human in the past when facing Cleveland as witnessed from his 4.05 ERA, 1.29 WHIP, along with giving up 59 runs, which was the second-most of any team in his illustrious career. Therefore, this could be a challenge in his first game back from the injured list.