After a series win against the New York Yankees, the Jays now control their own destiny.
Earlier this week, the Toronto Blue Jays took a series from the Boston Red Sox.
This weekend, the Jays have taken a series from the New York Yankees and will go for the sweep on Sunday.
At 61-64, it's still a disappointing season on the surface for Toronto, but they have moved to within 0.5 games of the third and final wild card spot, which gives fans reasons to dream about a possible playoff berth again this year.
Fangraphs has the team's playoff odds at 20 percent, and while that is still too low to be incredibly optimistic about, the remaining schedule should give Toronto fans more optimism moving forward.
As noted by Tankathon, the Blue Jays have the third-easiest remaining schedule in baseball, with an opponent winning percentage of just .481. The Jays have four more games remaining against the Yankees and three with the Tampa Bay Rays, with six of those on the road, but if they can navigate those seven games (which are all in a row), then they are rewarded with the likes of the under .500 Athletics, Reds and Royals.
Cleveland, Baltimore and Seattle are all also vying for that wild card spot, meaning the Jays will have a chance to directly impact their competition plenty as well.
If the Jays are able to navigate this schedule to the playoffs, it will have been a remarkable turnaround and an incredible testament to mental fortitude. Sure, the Jays have benefited from the mediocrity of the American League to stay in it, but to be able to navigate the poor performance of Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and all the injuries is a testament to John Schneider's clubhouse culture.
The Blue Jays have seen Cody Ponce, Bowden Francis, Anthony Santander, Daulton Varsho (pre-trade), George Springer, Jesus Sanchez, Dylan Cease, Shane Bieber and Trey Yesavage all hit the injured list this season. Francis and Santander haven't played at all, and Yesavage is on the injured list currently.
The team also traded Jeff Hoffman, Varsho and Kevin Gausman at the deadline.
Up next
After Sunday's finale with the Yankees, the Jays will be off on Monday before heading to Tampa Bay for the start of the series with the Rays. Right-hander Jose Soriano will take the ball in that game while the Rays haven't announced a starter yet.
Soriano is 9-6 with a 3.16 ERA between his time with the Los Angeles Angels and Blue Jays. The Jays acquired him at the trade deadline in a move that sent top prospect Arjun Nimmala to LA.
