After a much-needed All-Star break, the Toronto Blue Jays will open up the second half of the season on Friday night against the Chicago White Sox at Rogers Centre.

The Jays are 45-51, a disappointing mark through 96 games, especially after last season's World Series run. However, they are just 2.5 games back of the third and final wild card spot in the American League, meaning there is a theoretical pathway to the playoffs.

Let's take a deeper dive at how the schedule impacts things for John Schneider's club moving forward.

As noted by Tankathon, the Blue Jays have the 11th-hardest schedule remaining, with an opponent winning percentage of .501.

The Blue Jays have played 49 games at home already and 47 on the road, meaning they have 34 road games remaining vs. 32 at home. While that's not a big difference, it is nice to have homefield advantage more often, and the Jays don't have it.

The Blue Jays have seven games against current playoff teams (White Sox, Rays) coming out of the All-Star break. Those games are at home, which is a benefit, but if Toronto struggles in those contests, they could find themselves as sellers at the Aug. 3 trade deadline.

If they surge out of the break, they could end up as buyers who believe in their own talent and ability to get back to the playoffs.

Well, the first seven out of the All-Star break are certainly not easy, but the seven-game road trip through three cities from Aug. 3-Aug. 9 is not easy, either. The Jays will play three games in Houston, with a one-day pit stop in Chicago for a makeup against the Cubs. They also have three on the road at the Phillies.

Oh by the way, from Aug. 14-Aug. 23, they'll play only the Yankees and Rays, including six against New York. Three of the Yankees games and all three against the Rays will be on the road.

All of September is relatively favorable. Currently, only six September games will be played against projected playoff teams. They'll get six games with the Orioles, three with the Royals and three with the last-place Cincinnati Reds.

The Blue Jays will take on the White Sox on Friday night. Schneider has released the pitching plan for the first five games out of the break.

Remember to join our BLUE JAYS on ROUNDTABLE community, which is FREE! You can post your own thoughts, in text or video form, and you can engage with our Roundtable staff, as well as other Blue Jays fans. If prompted to download the Roundtable APP, that's free too