Toronto Blue Jays: Will they Win the AL East?
By Vinnie
The ultimate deciding factor on who wins the AL East is likely to be the team that pitches better and on paper, the Toronto Blue Jays lead the way.
I think we can all agree the Toronto Blue Jays have had a successful season up to this point. However, the most important question right now is: Do they have what it takes to finish above the Baltimore Orioles and Boston Red Sox, to win the AL East?
All three teams are offensive juggernauts – the Orioles are eighth in the MLB when it comes to runs per game, averaging 4.7. The Red Sox lead the MLB, averaging 5.4 runs, while the Blue Jays rank sixth, with 4.8 runs.
However, the Red Sox and Blue Jays have struggled to produce runs since the trade deadline. Boston has scored just 23 runs in their last seven games, while Toronto has only19 over their last eight games.
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The Orioles had some struggles of their own during July, where they scored just 89 runs in 26 games – that’s an average of just 3.42. They look to have turned things around in August, with 30 runs over their last six games.
Despite some of the struggles each of these teams have had to produce at certain points this season, there is no doubt all three have an elite offense. All have the capability to catch fire in this final stretch, as we approach the postseason.
The ultimate deciding factor is likely to be the team that pitches better and on paper, the Blue Jays lead the way with a team ERA of 3.75, compared to 4.20 and 4.26 for the Orioles and Red Sox respectively. In addition, Toronto’s team WHIP is 1.21, while Baltimore’s is 1.37 and Boston’s is 1.32. (All statistics as of August 7th.)
The Red Sox and Orioles tend to get into huge offensive battles more frequently than your typical big league team. However, it’s this offensive-minded approach to the game, although fun to watch, that could leave them doomed in the long run.
So far in 2016, the Blue Jays have allowed just 4.1 runs per game. By comparison, the Orioles have allowed 4.4 runs and the Red Sox have given up 4.7.
Toronto is capable of putting up big-time runs, but they more often win games by keeping their opponents off the scoreboard. Many of their leads were blown by the likes of Jesse Chavez and Drew Storen, who are no longer with the ball club.
The Blue Jays starting rotation is the best in the AL and we should expect them to continue pitching at an elite level. This is especially the case, now we know Aaron Sanchez is staying in the rotation, which has been increased to six players.
All the Blue Jays have to do now is bust out of their scoring slump with the help of three of the best hitters in baseball – Jose Bautista, Josh Donaldson and Edwin Encarnacion. While we shouldn’t expect their struggles to last very long, Toronto needs them to be producing at their best sooner rather than later.
If all goes well, we should see the Blue Jays atop the AL East standings at the end of the season, in the process claiming their second consecutive postseason berth. It will then be a case of seeing if they have what it takes to win the World Series.
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What’s your take on the Toronto Blue Jays? Do you predict they will take the AL East, or will they be battling for a wild card spot? Let us know what you think in the comments section below.