The Toronto Blue Jays seemed to have the American League Eastern Division title in the bag just over a week ago. But a late-September swoon might just leave them holding the bag. The New York Yankees have pulled even with three games to play, going into Friday night’s games (though the Jays hold the tiebreaker).
Toronto hasn’t won a World Series in well over 30 years, since going back-to-back in 1992 & 1993. It says here that the drought will not end in 2025.
We identified three main factors that led to the Jays losing their grip on the division lead, now let’s take a look at four reasons they will not win the World Series this year.
Starting Rotation Imploding
The Toronto rotation, which ran five and even six deep, was thought to be a strength. But that was then. This is now. The rotation has hit more than a few bumps in the road of late. Both Jose Berrios and Chris Bassitt have hit the injured list, while Max Scherzer has pitched to a 10.30 ERA over his last four starts.
Sure, Kevin Gausman and Shane Bieber should form a solid one-two punch, but in a postseason series, a third ‘punch’ is needed. Who would be the No. 3 starter in October?
Trey Yesavage? The rookie has looked solid and mostly unflappable thus far. But the kid has all of nine innings pitched at the major league level. Are they really ready to throw the 22-year-old into the fire of a postseason start? It’s more likely that a multi-faceted relief role is the safer bet for October for the former first-rounder.
The aforementioned Scherzer as the No. 3 starter in the postseason? Well, let’s put it this way: Who will be the one to tell Mad Max, the three-time Cy Young winner who hasn’t pitched an inning of relief since 2008, that he’ll be pitching out of the ‘pen in the playoffs? Right, exactly. So, 10.30 September ERA and all, Scherzer is likely the third man up in the playoff rotation. Yikes.
Bo Bichette’s Absence
He was (and still is) the major league leader in hits for 2025, and his absence from the lineup over the past little while due to a knee sprain has obviously had a negative impact on the offense. Will Bo Bichette be back at some point in the playoffs? Manager John Schneider “hopes” he will. But Bichette hasn’t even begun a running program yet in his rehab.
Yes, he’s been swinging a bat, and throwing the ball (“a bit”). But last we checked, running is a pretty important part of the game. And when (if?) he does return, how will he perform?
The $500 Million Man Choking Down The Stretch
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is the face of this franchise. The ‘superstar’ who should be carrying the team on his back when they need it most. But over the last little while, with Bichette out of the lineup, Guerrero has been anything but. In his last seven games (going into Friday night) he’s batting .192 with a .453 OPS. Those numbers would even make Andres Gimenez squeamish.
Vladdy needs to be the star he signed up to be if this team is going to make waves in the playoffs. It just doesn’t feel like that’s in the cards.
The Bullpen — Need we say more?
Appropriately, we’ve saved the bullpen for last. With the three issues listed above, the Blue Jays’ bullpen’s season-long woes have taken a back seat of late. But there’s no hiding a weak ‘pen in the postseason. In recent years, the importance of a lock-it-down relief corps has become critical to any World Series winner. Jeff Hoffman, Seranthony Dominguez and Louis Varland (or Yariel Rodriguez, or Brendon Little, or…) will never be mistaken for the 2015 Kansas City Royals three-man wrecking crew that led them to the championship.
To recap, a starting rotation that’s showing plenty of cracks, a top hitter missing in action, a ‘superstar’ who hasn’t been playing like one, and a bullpen with no lights-out back-end will all conspire to ensure the Blue Jays’ World Series draught reaches 32 years.
