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
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.