This is a 10* on TOR

Toronto (84-65) continues its quest to lock down a playoff berth with a visit to Tampa Bay (92-58) to start the week. This is the same Rays team that the Blue Jays took two of three from last week. That was at home, however the Jays have a pretty good road record as well (41-33). They’ve outscored teams by 1.3 runs/game on the road and that does not include the “home” games in Dunedin, FL or Buffalo, NY when they were not allowed to cross the border because to COVID-19. So technically, no team has won more games outside of their actual home park than Toronto. They are also 15-3 in September. While they won’t be able to catch the Rays for first place in the division, the Blue Jays have moved into the second Wild Card. They are two back of Boston in the win column. Passing the Red Sox would mean the Wild Card Game would take place in Toronto. The Blue Jays have to keep winning as the Yankees are just 1.5 games behind them and Oakland is two back. Tampa Bay is just 8-10 this month as they’ve hit a bit of a malaise. Sandwiched around the series loss to Toronto last week were two series against the Tigers and they lost four of the seven games to them, a below .500 team. Having top pitching prospect Shane Baz make his big league debut is cause for excitement, but this is a tough spot for Baz starting against Robbie Ray, who is looking to win the AL Cy Young. Ray has a 1.85 ERA in five previous starts vs. Tampa this year. The last time he lost was July 21st. In his last seven starts, Ray has a 1.91 ERA and 0.85 WHIP. Play on TORONTO

AAA