Baseball

Mariners vs Blue Jays: setting the table for the series
Charles-Alexis Brisebois
Mariners vs Blue Jays: setting the table for the series
Credit: KSL

For the first time in about a decade, the American League Championship Series will not feature the Astros or Yankees. Instead, it's the Blue Jays and Mariners.

It's going to be different, and it's going to take place starting Sunday evening, at 8 p.m.

The Blue Jays had set foot in the Championship Series in 2015 and 2016, but had failed to reach it since. Their goal will be to reach the World Series for the third time in their history.

On the other occasions (1992 and 1993), the club had won it all.

As for the Mariners, they haven't qualified for the World Series since 2001. And their goal will be to qualify for the first time in their history. No other baseball franchise has ever made it to the World Series.

So, what are we watching for?

Pitchers

Since the crazy Game #5 between the Mariners and Tigers, one question remains: which starting pitchers will be available for Sunday's game against the Blue Jays?

Colleague Pascal Harvey summed it up nicely in a piece on the pitchers used in Friday's final game.

George Kirby pitched just over five innings as a starter on Friday, but Logan Gilbert (2+) and Luis Castillo (1.1) were also used for more than one inning in the ultimate game.

Bryce Miller (game #4, October 8), Gilbert (game #3, October 7), Castillo (game #2, October 5) and Kirby (game #1, October 4) were the starters for the other four games.

They're all excellent pitchers. But who will be ready on Sunday the 12th? Will it be a bullpen day? A day when we'll expect a short outing from the starting pitcher? Nobody really knows.

Let's note that Bryan Woo is getting better and would be the perfect option for Game #1, as he was the Mariners' best pitcher in 2025. But even though he's recovering well from his injury and will surely be in the line-up for the series against the Blue Jays, he won't be available at the start of the series.

What about the Blue Jays?

Not only will they be able to line up their rotation any way they want (Kevin Gausman will pitch on Sunday and Trey Yesavage and Shane Bieber should follow), but Chris Bassitt should be able to return to pitch game #4. They know they're in a strong position.

He'd have to tamp down a reliever from the 26-player lineup. Justin Bruihl, perhaps?

Obviously, the Blue Jays bullpen has its flaws (it may be the club's biggest question mark), but at least the club is rested. I'm sure the Mariners didn't like seeing Eduardo Bazardo pitch 2.2 innings on Friday…

Andres Munoz is clearly the Mariners' go-to guy, but if the Blue Jays can hit his slider, they'll be fine. We're also keeping an eye on Matt Brash, who had some success against Detroit.

In Toronto, we wonder which Jeff Hoffman will show up on the mound. Seranthony Dominguez and Louis Varland, the two deadline additions, are also ones to watch.

Position players

The player to watch right now is Vladimir Guerrero Jr. After all, he beat the Yankees almost single-handedly (we're exaggerating here, but you get the idea) in an emotional series.

Will he be as good in a series where the intensity won't be the same? There'll be no “DAAAAA MARINER LOSE” after the series…

Obviously, we've seen just how formidable the Blue Jays' forwards can be. Ernie Clement and Daulton Varsho really supported Vladdy against the Yankees.

Alejandro Kirk, George Springer, Anthony Santander, Nathan Lukes, Addison Barger, Davis Schneider, Andres Gimenez, Myles Straw: the Blue Jays have the resources to dominate offensively and defensively.

But the big question is whether Bo Bichette will be able to play. He recently hinted that he'll be in the 26-man roster for the championship series. We'll see if he does.

But how fit would he be to contribute? That's the question.

In Seattle (where the hitters must also be tired after a loooong game #5), the forward line is different from that of the Torontonians. It's less explosive and less conducive to big innings, as we saw in the games against Detroit.

I don't know how much more dynamic it will be in a batting stadium like the Rogers Centre… but I do know that if the Blue Jays had played Game #5 against Detroit, they wouldn't have scored just two runs in 14 innings before winning in the 15th.

Cal Raleigh, the Mariners' playoff MVP, struck out eight against the Tigers, including a long ball. He was the only qualified hitter with an OPS over .708 in the last week.

J.P. Crawford, Jorge Polanco (who has two home runs against Tarik Skubal in the Division Series), Eugenio Suarez, Josh Naylor (the Canadiens whose wife could give birth at any moment), Julio Rodriguez and Mitch Garver are also ones to watch.

The managers

Dan Wilson and John Schneider won a series this week for the first time in their managerial careers. The Mariners man has the advantage of having been to the championship series often (three times) as a Mariners catcher, back in the day.

That said, with the state of his pitching staff, Wilson starts with a catch against him. His pitching management will be crucial in the American League Championship Series.

The imponderables

The Blue Jays have probably chased their playoff demons (the current core had never won a playoff game before this season) recently, but the fact remains that the Mariners beat the Blue Jays in the playoffs in 2022.

We all remember the historic collapse in Game #2 and the collision between George Springer or Bo Bichette.

This season, the Mariners won two of the three games between the two clubs in April at Rogers Centre, but the Blue Jays swept their three-game series in Seattle in May.

Both stadiums are capable of being quite loud, especially if the roof is closed. On Friday night, Tarik Skubal didn't hear his teammates tell him that Josh Naylor had started stealing third base because of the noise. #AvantageDuTerrain

By the way, will the Mariners prevent Canadian fans from filling the stadium for Games 3, 4 and 5 by limiting ticket sales in Canada? After all, Canadian Blue Jays fans often leave from Vancouver for Blue Jays games in Seattle.

The Mariners must have thought of this.

But more importantly, will the Mariners have gas after traveling across the continent twice in the last few days AND after playing a crazy game on Friday night?

We'll see in due course.

This content was created with the help of AI.

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