The Toronto Blue Jays could clinch a playoff spot for the second straight season as soon as tonight.
But they will need a little help from the Seattle Mariners if they don’t want their playoff fate hanging in the air heading into the final weekend of the MLB season.
The Blue Jays (88-71) currently hold the second wild card spot but are only two games up on the Seattle Mariners (86-73), who would finish out of the playoffs if the season ended today.
Here is a look at Toronto’s path to the playoffs:
THE MAGIC NUMBER RIGHT NOW IS ONE
Entering Friday night’s game, the Blue Jays’ magic number to clinch a playoff spot was two. It has come down to just one after Toronto beat the Tampa Bay Rays 11-4. If the Seattle Mariners, who are playing the Texas Rangers, lose that game, it will assure Toronto at least the third and final wild card spot. But if the Mariners win, Toronto would still enter the weekend needing either a win or a Mariners loss to advance to the playoffs.
THE ODDS FAVOUR THE BLUE JAYS
The Blue Jays ma have their work cut out for them as they finish their season with a three-game series against the 97-62 Rays, however Tampa Bay may have less to play for after the Baltimore Orioles clinched the AL East title on Thursday. According to the latest projections from FanGraphs, the Blue Jays have a 93.1 per cent chance of advancing to the playoffs and a 6.1 per cent chance of winning the World Series. Those World Series odds may not sound encouraging but only seven teams in baseball have a better chance at winning it all, according to FanGraphs.
WHO IS THE JAYS MOST LIKELY PLAYOFF OPPONENT?
If the Jays finish hold on to the second wild card spot – they are currently one game up on the Astros (and hold the tiebreaker over them) – they will travel to Tampa to take on the Rays in a best of three series that would start Tuesday. Should the Astros take possession of the second wild card spot, the Jays would travel to Minnesota for a series with the AL Central-winning Twins. The bad news, at least for Jays fans, is that the club will need to advance to the divisional round in order for playoff baseball to come to the Rogers Centre, as all wild card round games are hosted by the higher-seeded team.