Who will the Toronto Blue Jays face in the AL wild-card series? There are 8 potential scenarios
The Toronto Blue Jays and Tampa Bay Rays will close out Major League Baseball's regular season Sunday at Rogers Centre in a playoff warm-up for both teams.
Toronto dropped a 7-5 decision to Tampa Bay on Saturday but clinched a post-season spot a few hours later when the Texas Rangers beat the Seattle Mariners 6-1.
- Download our app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
The Blue Jays are expected to celebrate their playoff berth after the mid-afternoon finale.
It remains unclear who Toronto will play in the best-of-three wild-card round starting Tuesday. Toronto will be on the road as the No. 5 or No. 6 seed in the American League.
If the Blue Jays are seeded fifth, they will play Tampa Bay. If Toronto is the sixth seed, a matchup against the AL Central Division champion Minnesota Twins awaits.
The AL West Division crown remains up for grabs entering the final day of the campaign. The order of finish will also impact the wild-card standings.
The Texas Rangers enter play Sunday with a one-game lead on the second-place Houston Astros in the West. The Rangers will visit the Seattle Mariners and the Astros will face the Diamondbacks in Arizona.
Toronto and Houston are tied for the last two wild-card spots.
There are eight potential scenarios based on the results of the three games. Five of them would see Toronto play Tampa Bay and three would see the Blue Jays face Minnesota.
The Blue Jays were swept in the wild-card round in 2020 and 2022. Toronto's last playoff win came in 2016.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 1, 2023.
Toronto Blue Jays' Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (27) gestures with his bat after popping out during tenth inning American League MLB baseball action against the Tampa Bay Rays, in Toronto, Saturday, Sept. 30, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Donald Trump picks former U.S. congressman Pete Hoekstra as ambassador to Canada
U.S. president-elect Donald Trump has nominated former diplomat and U.S. congressman Pete Hoekstra to be the American ambassador to Canada.
Genetic evidence backs up COVID-19 origin theory that pandemic started in seafood market
A group of researchers say they have more evidence to suggest the COVID-19 pandemic started in a Chinese seafood market where it spread from infected animals to humans. The evidence is laid out in a recent study published in Cell, a scientific journal, nearly five years after the first known COVID-19 outbreak.
This is how much money you need to make to buy a house in Canada's largest cities
The average salary needed to buy a home keeps inching down in cities across Canada, according to the latest data.
'My two daughters were sleeping': London Ont. family in shock after their home riddled with gunfire
A London father and son they’re shocked and confused after their home was riddled with bullets while young children were sleeping inside.
Smuggler arrested with 300 tarantulas strapped to his body
Police in Peru have arrested a man caught trying to leave the country with 320 tarantulas, 110 centipedes and nine bullet ants strapped to his body.
Boissonnault out of cabinet to 'focus on clearing the allegations,' Trudeau announces
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has announced embattled minister Randy Boissonnault is out of cabinet.
Baby dies after being reported missing in midtown Toronto: police
A four-month-old baby is dead after what Toronto police are calling a “suspicious incident” at a Toronto Community Housing building in the city’s midtown area on Wednesday afternoon.
Sask. woman who refused to provide breath sample did not break the law, court finds
A Saskatchewan woman who refused to provide a breath sample after being stopped by police in Regina did not break the law – as the officer's request was deemed not lawful given the circumstances.
Parole board reverses decision and will allow families of Paul Bernardo's victims to attend upcoming parole hearing in person
The families of the victims of Paul Bernardo will be allowed to attend the serial killer’s upcoming parole hearing in person, the Parole Board of Canada (PBC) says.