ten random thoughts: post-trade deadline/home stretch edition

 

We are a couple of weeks after the trade deadlne with six weeks left in the 2026 regular season. In this edition of ten random thoughts, we'll look at the latest injuries and their impact on the team going forward, the trade deadline - players accquired and players sent packing, look ahead to the home stretch and the remaining games and more. Buckle up Blue Jays fans, we are fast approaching the last station in this wild 2026 season. Here are ten random thoughts from around the MLB.

1. The 2026 season has been an unmitigated nightmare for the Blue Jays and the proverbial hits kept on comimg in the last few weeks. Fitst came the news that Yimi Garcia's season has effectively ended before it began. The 35-year-old righty, who has been plagued with injuries the last 2 years, now heads into free agency dealing with thoracic outlet syndrome. At the moment Garcia is deciding whether to have surgery to correct the issue, which would keep him out well into the 2027 season, if it happens. Then Trey Yesavage injured the meniscus in his right knee warming up for the 3rd inning of his first start of August and had surgery last Tuesday to repair the damage.. Even the trade deadline acquisitions aren't safe from the injury situation in Toronto. Jameson Taillon pulled himelf after the 4th inning of his first home start last Monday with forearm tightness - always a concern since that can be a precursor to a tommy john surgery. Hopefully the Blue Jays learned their lesson from Jose Berrios and will take every precaution with Taillon before the injury becomes worse. Spencer Arrighetti was diagnosed with Morton's Neuroma, essentially feels like you are stepping on a rock evidentally. Why the Blue Jays are going to let him try to pitch through it I have no idea. It's likely Arrighetti will change his mechanics, which could compromise other body parts like his shoulder, elbow or back. It looks like the Blue Jays are going to end the year the way it started - with a bullpen day every 5 days. Among the walking wounded are Vlad (missed a couple of days with a sore quad), Kazuma Okamoto (took a foul ball off the knee cap) annd George Springer (missed a couple of days with left shoulder sooreness). In the coming weeks, once the Blue Jays are (likely) mathematically eliminated, you will see some players like Vlad (he is currently on the 7day concussion IL after getting kneed in the head, Springer (battling a sore left shoulder and others who have been playing through injuries, shut down for the year. Quite frankly, the medical staff needs an overhaul because the way they have been managing injuries isn't great.

2. Blue Jays traded away and how they are doing:

• Daulton Varsho - Set to become a free agent after 5 years in Toronto, Varsho essentially switched dugouts in Houston. He's not off to a great start in Houston, batting .140 with 1HR and 3RBI. His defense has been on the decline and he tends to be a streaky hitter at the best of times.
• Kevin Gausman - Fan favorite Kevin Gausman went to the windy city and the Chicago Cubs to give their pitching staff a boost, Also a pending free agent, it could just be a farewell instead of a goodbye with Gausman likely to give strong consideration to coming back to Toronto. Gausman did not have to face his former team in his first start as a Cub, instead facing the Royals on the road where he threw 7 strong innings to lead his new team to a win. Despite a regression this season. Gausman can still pitch a solid game and will give the Cubs a chance to win in the playoffs. He is 1-1 with a 6.17ERA over two starts after he was knocked around in his second start as a Cub
• Jeff Hoffman - For Jeff Hoffman, this is a welcome change of scenery. Blue Jays fans have not forgiven him for blowing the save in game 7 of the world series. The hope was Hoffman would rebound in 2026, but the 9th inning struggles continued and he was eventually removed from the closer's role after blowing 5 saves. He won't have to face the Blue Jays until next year. Hoffman is 0-1 with a 3.60ERA in 5 appearances as a Twin
• Adam Macko - This might have been the most surprising move since Macko was solid when he first came up. Sure he stumbled a bit more recently, but blame it on being overworked and maybe the league adjusting to him. Macko has not made an appearance for Texas yet. He was 2-0 with a 4.01ERA over 22 appearances for the Blue Jays this season. 

3. Blue Jays Acquired and how they are doing.

• Jose Soriano - Soriano is the big add at the deadline and will be a part of the rotation for the next few seasons. Soriano had a decent game against the Phillies, allowing a run on 4 hits while walking 3 and striking out 3 over 4.2 innings. He certainly has a lot of upside and was AL pitcher of the month in April
• Josh Smith - The utility infielder will see playing time at a few positions and start mainly against righties as a left-handed bat. Smith is batting .190 with 1 HR and an RBI over 21AB as a Blue Jay. In the field, he has 5 putouts and 15 assists so far.
• Jameson Taillon - The Blue Jays might only see a brief look at Taillon, who will be out at least a couple of weeks with right forearm tendenitis. Taillon, who was recently DFA'd by the Cubs  Taillom had a 3.38ERA over 2 starts before he got hurt.

4. Quirky stat from the trade deadline: The Blue Jays have 3 of the 4 AL pitchers of the month for 2026 (Soriano won the award in April, Spencer Arrighetti was AL pitcher of the month in May and Dylan Cease was AL pitcher of the month for July. The June winner was Rays righty Drew Rasmussen)

5. Here's the wild card scenario, the Blue Jays are tied the 3rd WC spot with the Rangers and Orioles. Just behind the Blue Jays are the Twins (won the season series and hold the tiebreaker), Guardians, and Tigers. The Mariners sit a half game back of the Blue Jays. At the moment, it look like it's going to take 80-85 wins to snag the last wild card spot. In a way, the Blue Jays control their destiy a bit since they have series remaining against all but the Twins

6. Some key series that will decide the Blue Jays playoff fate:

• August 28-30 vs. Seattle Mariners  - the Mariners took the series in Seattle on the 4th of July long weekend and will no doubt be motivated to deal a blow to the Blue Jays playoff chances after the Blue Jays eliminated them from the ALCS last year.
• September 1-3 @ Cleveland Guardians - The Blue Jays took the series in Toronto at the end of April. With the AL Central title also very much in play, the Guardians will be motivated to win.
• September 11-13 vs. Baltimore Orioles and September 21-23 @ Baltimore Orioles - The Blue Jays have a 4-3 edge in the season series. The Orioles are always a tough foe for the Blue Jays
• September- 14-16 vs. Detroit Tigers - The Blue Jays took the series in Detroit back in mid-May - at least they won't be facing reigning and 2-time AL Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal

7. The Red Sox run should not have counted last Monday. It feels like that rule was made up on the fly. The Red Sox lost track of how many outs there were period and runs on 3rd outs only count if the base runner crosses the plate before the 3rd out was made and Anthony Siegler was jogging off the field not toward home plate.

8. The Dodgers better enjoy their super roster now because once the salary cap/floor is implement and the deferred contract loophole is closed, that roster will be gutted and the Dodgers will no longer be able to buy all the best players in free agency or trade for the best available players at the trade deadline.

9. Finally, here's a fun story for all you video game junkies. I hope he slept and ate in those six days.

10. Blue Jay of the last month: Andres Gimenez. He's had some big hits since the all-star break, including one in the 10th inning Sunday to bring the Blue Jays witthin a run on Sunday. Since the all-star break, Gimeneez is batting .265 with 1HR and 8RBI over 83 AB

Game #126 - New York Yankees (69-55) @ Toronto Blue Jays (61-65) - game recap

 

Dylan Cease fired 6.1 strong innings in a 4-2 extra innings loss to the Yankees

After another comeback win over the Yankees thanks to a 2RBI effort from Charles McAdoo, the Blue Jays were looking to extend the win streak to 3 games and complete their 2nd sweep of the season. Ricky Tiedemann was optioned to AAA-ball and Brendon Little was activated from the paternity list. Ace Dylan Cease got the start with Alejandro Kirk behind the plate. Daz Cameron was in LF, Myles Straw was in CF and Brett Bateman was in RF. Ernie Clement was back in the lineup at 2B and George Springer was back in the lineup as DH after a day off yesterday. Could the Blue Jays make it 3 straight wins and comeplete their 2nd sweep of the season? Here is today's game recap.

Game Highlights:

• The Yankees opened the scoring in the top of the 3rd on a sac fly by Luis Garcia Jr. that scored Jose Caballero
• The Blue Jays tied it in the bottom of the 5th as Daz Cameron doubled scoring Kazuma Okamoto
• The Yankees retook the lead in the top of the 7th as Caballero singled scoring George Lombard Jr.. A second run was taken away when the review showed Charles McAdoo had tagged out Caballero before Jazz Chisholm Jr. crossed home plate for the 3rd out of the inning
• Dylan Cease pitching line: 6.1IP 2H 2R (both earned) 3BB 10K 104 pitches (60 for strikes)
• Ryan Weathers pitching line: 7.1IP 6H 1R (earned) 1BB 4K 95 pitches (59 for strikes)
• The Blue Jays tied it in the bottom of the 9th on a sac fly by Ernie Clement that scored Josh Smith
• The Yankees took the lead in the top of the 10th as Ben Rice hammered a 2-run bomb to right-center; also scoring Ali Sanchez
• The Blue Jays got one back in the bottom half of the inning as Andres Gimenez singled scoring Okamoto
• Tim Hill got the last 3 outs for his 2nd save of the season
• Final score: Yankees 3 Blue Jays 2 (10 innings)

My Take:

• Dylan Cease fired 6.1 strong innings, giving up a pair odf runs on 2 hits while walking 3 and striking out 10. He retired 11 in a row at one point and really didn't get into any real serious trouble all day. Cease is going to get serious consideration for the Cy Young. He'll face the same Yankees lineup in 5 days time.
• The bullpen gave up 3 runs (1 was charged to Cease after Brendon Little couldn't hold the score where it was) on 4 hits while walking 2 and striking out 2 over 3.2 innings. Ex-Dbacks closer Pail Sewald made his Blue Jays debut and recorded 5 outs, allowing a hit and striking out a batter. Brayden Fisher took the loss after being taken deep by Ben Rice.
• The offense needs to start producing more because asking the pitchers to be Cy Young every time out isn't sustainsabble. Daz Cameron made an immediate contribution with an RBI double and Ernie Clement briefly tied the score in the 9th with a sac fly.
• Lots of ABS challenges today with a notoriously bad umpire behind the plate.  The Blue Jays successfully overturned all 3 ABS challenges. The Yankees were 7-2 on ABS challenges.
• The Blue Jays were 2-9 with runners in scoring position
• In terms of the wild card race, the Blue Jays are a game back of the Rangers and Orioles for the 3rd WC spot of the moment after dropping a half game with the loss. The Orioles beat the Rays and the Tigers lost to the White Sox. The Guardians/Padres were scoreless early in their game and the Rangers/A's were knotted at 2-2 in the 5th inning. The Orioles and Tigers play tomorrow and could gain a half game on the idle Blue Jays with wins tomorrow.
• Up next, after a travel day/off-day tomorrow, the Blue Jays commence a road trip in the house of horrors that is Tropicana Field in Tampa Bay. The Rays have dominated the season series so far, winning 8 of the first 10 games in the season series, outscoring the Blue Jays 54-28. Jose Soriano will start for the Blue Jays on Tuesday, The Rays haven't set their rotation for the series yet.

Game #126 New York Yankees (68-55) @ Toronto Blue Jays (61-64)

Game #125 - New York Yankees (68-55) @ Toronto Blue Jays (61-64) - game recap

 

Charles McAdoo drove in a pair of runs in a 4-1 comeback win over the Yankees

After a huge comeback win over the Yankees, the Blue Jays were looking to extend the win streak to 2 games and notch their 16th series win of the season. Rickey Tiedemann was recalled from AAA-ball and Chase Lee was optioned to AAA-ball. Lazaro Estrada was DFA'd. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was placed on the 7-day concussion IL. OF Daz Cameron was selected to the MLB roster. Brayden Fisher got the start with Brandon Valenzuela behind the plate. Josh Smith was at 2B and Charles McAdoo was at 1B. Alejandro Kirk served as DH. Could the Blue Jays make it 2 straight wins and notch their 16th series win of the season? Here is today's game recap.

Game Highlights:

• Brayden Fisher pitching line: 1IP 0H 0R 1BB 0K 12 pitches (6 for strikes)
• The Yankees opened the scoring in the top of the 2nd as George Lombard Jr. singled scoring Spencer Jones
• The Blue Jays tied it in the bottom of the 3rd as Alejandro Kirk sungled scoring Brett Batemam
• Cam Schlittler pitching line: 5.1IP 4H 1R (earned) 3BB 7K  97 pitches (56 for strikes)
• The Blue Jays took the lead in the bottom of the 7th as Charles McAdoo singled scoring Ernie Clement
• The Blue Jays added a run in the bottom of the 8th as McAdoo singled home Andres Gimenez
• Two batters later, Brandon Valenzuela scored on a ground out hit by Nathan Lukes
• Louis Varland threw a perfect 9th for his 28th save of the season
• Final score: Blue Jays 4 Yankees 1

My Take:

• Brayden Fisher faced an all too familiar position: first man out of the bullpen aka the opener of a bullpen day. It seems the baseball gods want the Blue Jays to have a bullpen day. With a full rotation on the IL (Jose Berrios, Cody Ponce, Trey Yesavage, Bowden Francis and Spencer Arrighetti) the Blue Jays were forced to piece it together to get 27 outs. Fisher got the first three on an efficient 12 pitches, walking 1 batter.
• The rest of the bullpen held the Yankees to a run on 4 hits while walking 1 and striking out 7 over the last 8 innings. Rickey Tiedemann, after years of fighting his own body with injuries, finally made his MLB and rewarded the Blue Jays for their patience in his arrival. Tiedeman gave up a run on 2 hits, but recorded 5 outs, including his first two career strikeouts and his velocity was in the upper 90s. Mason Fluharty and Varland both retired every batter they faced. Thank goodness there is just one day left before a badly needed day off for the bullpen that is absolutely running on fumes after 17 straight days with games and 30 in 31. Spencer Miles, who has been great out of the bullpen, was credired with the win.
• The offense keeps finding ways to caa in runs when they need them. While they are still not exactly tearing the cover off the baseball consistentl, the Blue Jays are getting things done through classic small ball - sac bunts to be exact. Charles McAdoo is taking full advantage of his second stint with the Blue Jays, driving in a pair today. Alejandro Kirk knotted the game at one with a clutch RBI single. This team is getting back to what made them successful last year - comeback wins - never being out of a game.
• Tomorrow could be wi;d - pending the results of the rest of today's games. Detroit has already lost to the White Sox. At the moment, there is a 4-way tie for the 3rd and final WC spot. If the Twins and Rangers lose their games tonight, the Blue Jays will wake up only tied with the Twins for the 3rd WC spot. If the Twins and Rangers both win, the Blue Jays and Tigers would be a half game back of the Twins and Rangers for the 3rd WC spot. The Orioles are also within striking distance. 
• Austin Wells was unsuccessful on the game's only ABS challange
• The Blue Jays were 4-15 with runners in scoring position
• Up next, the Blue Jays try to extend the win streak to 3 and complete their second sweep of the season. Ace Dylan Cease starts against Yankees lefty Ryan Weathers

Game #125 New York Yankees (68-54) @ Toronto Blue Jays (60-64)