The Yankees' ace made his case on Friday night, and the Toronto Blue Jays' right-hander will make his on Saturday.
In the Toronto Blue Jays series against the New York Yankees this weekend, it's a battle between two playoff hopefuls.
Of course, the Yankees playoff resume is nearly solidified, with Fangraphs giving them a 99.9 percent chance to be playing in October.
The case for the Blue Jays is far more up in the air, as the Jays enter play on Saturday at 63-67 and with just a 17 percent chance to make the playoffs.
However, there's more than just potential playoff berths and seedings on the line: This weekend is also a battle of American League Cy Young hopefuls.
On Friday night, Yankees' ace Cam Schlittler made his case, going six strong innings and allowing just one run on six hits. He walked three and struck out four in moving to 11-6 on the year. The Yankees beat the Jays 3-1.
He owns a sparkling 2.16 ERA and has been the leader of a Yankees rotation that has seen injuries to Max Fried, Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodon at various points throughout the year.
However, Cease has been dominant this season as well, and he'll get a chance to make his case on Saturday afternoon in Game 2 of the series (1:35 p.m. ET).
Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Dylan Cease (84) adjusts his hat the during the second inning against the Boston Red Sox at Rogers Centre. Kevin Sousa-Imagn ImagesSigned to a seven-year, $210 million deal in the offseason, the 30-year-old Cease has been one of the best pitchers in the game, regardless of league. He started the All-Star Game for the American League and he leads the AL in strikeouts (tie) at 201 in just 137.2 innings.
Given the Blue Jays team struggles, he's only 7-5, but he has a 2.42 ERA. He also leads the American League in hits/9, home runs/9 and strikeouts per/9. His 1.06 WHIP is well-below his career average of 1.24, showing growth in his ability to limit contact, and an improvement in overall control.
By hitting the 200-strikeout plateau, Cease now has six consecutive seasons of 200 strikeouts or more. That's the fourth-longest streak in major league history.
Also for the Jays
Slugger Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is set to return to the lineup on Saturday after missing a week of action with a concussion. He made a rehab appearance at Single-A Dunedin on Thursday, going 1-for-1 with a double and two walks.
Guerrero has had a down season, but he'll hope to get things back on track in his return. He has seven home runs on the campaign, and has yet to homer at Rogers Centre. As a team, the Blue Jays are putting together one of their worst slugging seasons ever.
