The Toronto Blue Jays, on the final day of the regular season, secured the AL East crown with a huge win over the Tampa Bay Rays. This meant that, instead of going through the Wild Card gauntlet, they received a bye to the ALDS by virtue of having the best record in the American League. Now that the Wild Card series dust has settled, the Blue Jays know that they will be facing the New York Yankees in the ALDS after the Yankees handled the Boston Red Sox in Game 3 of their series, 4-0, thanks to an incredible start from Cam Schlittler.
The AL East race went down to the wire, and the Blue Jays only managed to escape all the way to the ALDS after they won the season series over the Yankees in 2025, 8-5. Considering how elite the Yankees' offense was in the regular season (they led MLB in total runs and home runs in 2025), the Blue Jays would certainly have preferred to face the Red Sox in a five-game series.
Nevertheless, to be the best, a team has to beat the best. The Blue Jays have to face the team in front of them, and the Yankees are the ones standing in the way of an ALCS trip and a potential World Series berth. They are certainly prepared for the upcoming war, if their recent post on social media is any indication.
“The stage is set. See you Saturday,” the Blue Jays' post for their upcoming ALDS clash against the Yankees reads.
Game 1 of the Blue Jays and Yankees' ALDS clash will be on Saturday, October 4, at 4:08 PM E.T. at Rogers Centre.
Blue Jays look to break postseason win drought vs. Yankees
The Blue Jays have made it to the playoffs three times in the 2020s, but in all of those years, they failed to record a single win — falling to their opponents in the AL Wild Card series 2-0 on every occasion. This made the last win of the regular season that much more important, as the Blue Jays do not have the best history when it comes to surviving that three-game series to start the postseason.
Now, they can have as many as five games to work with in the ALDS against the Yankees. They have not won a single postseason game since 2016, but if there's ever a time for them to do so, it's this year. They have homefield advantage through the ALCS, after all.
