Toronto looks for a quick response in Game 2 of its interleague series with Chicago after a lopsided 16-2 loss. Patrick Corbin starts for the Blue Jays, who are searching for relief from a taxed bullpen and a boost from Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who exited Friday
The Blue Jays woke up to the kind of score that lingers in your gut — 16-2. a battering that turns every inning into something you can’t unsee. For Toronto, though, the calendar doesn’t wait for pain. Game 2 of their interleague series with the Chicago Cubs arrives on Saturday, with first pitch set for 2:20 p.m. ET / 11:20 a.m. PT, offering a fresh chance to draw a different picture on the same blank canvas.
Patrick Corbin will take the mound as Toronto tries to steady things in front of a bullpen that has been pushed harder than it should have to be. The left-hander is coming off an outing on Sunday against the New York Yankees. an 8-3 loss in which he gave up two runs on seven hits in 3.2 innings. Across his most recent two starts, Corbin hasn’t lasted past the third inning.
That timing matters even more because the Blue Jays’ relief corps has already been carrying a heavier load. Toronto had a bullpen day against the Boston Red Sox on Wednesday. and Friday’s game featured another jarring wrinkle: Kevin Gausman. typically dependable. lasted only two innings while giving up seven runs on seven hits and four walks.
Corbin, who signed with the Jays as an emergency addition early in the season, will be making his 14th big-league appearance. In that 14th season, he carries a 4.57 ERA and a 1.48 WHIP with 43 strikeouts in 61 innings.
The concern in Toronto’s lineup isn’t just the size of Friday’s defeat — it’s what it says about timing and production. In the opener, the Blue Jays managed just two runs, with their bats quieted by emerging righty Ben Brown. George Springer was the lone Toronto hitter to draw a bright line through the night: his single in the third scored Andres Gimenez. and he followed that with a solo home run in the sixth. It was Springer’s eighth homer of the season.
But Game 2’s bigger shadow comes from Vladimir Guerrero Jr., whose night ended early when he exited Friday’s game with a back issue in the sixth inning. Guerrero Jr. missed two games last weekend with back tightness.
Toronto isn’t only hoping for health. It’s also trying to get Guerrero Jr. back into the rhythm that makes his season feel inevitable instead of uneven. He had broken a home-run drought on Thursday against the Red Sox, hitting his first round-tripper in over a month. Still. Friday didn’t offer a clean continuation: he went 0-for-3 on three softly hit balls before being replaced by Charles McAdoo.
Power has been the struggle all year for the 27-year-old. Guerrero Jr. has only four home runs in 2024, and his slash line sits at .279/.367/.372 — well below his career norms.
For the Cubs, the matchup on the mound comes with Colin Rea. Chicago will counter with the 35-year-old right-hander, who has posted a 5.35 ERA and a 1.46 WHIP in 74 innings across 15 appearances. The Blue Jays will be watching closely because Rea has given up a rough total over his recent stretch: 11 runs combined across his last two starts. His most recent outing came last Sunday against the San Francisco Giants. when he allowed four runs on six hits and three walks in 4.2 innings.
Rea has also had a familiar history against Toronto. Over his eight-year career. he has made two appearances versus the Blue Jays — one in 2016 with the San Diego Padres. and the most recent in 2024 with the Milwaukee Brewers. In those two games, he surrendered four runs in 13 innings while striking out eight. In the more recent start. he pitched seven innings of one-run ball. an outcome Toronto will hope to avoid repeating as it tries to find consistency in a season that has rarely felt steady.
Corbin’s need to keep the game from tipping further, Guerrero Jr.’s back issue hanging over every swing, and a Cubs starter carrying a recent reputation for trouble — all of it points to one simple idea for Toronto on Saturday: after a loss like 16-2, the only response that matters is the next one.
Blue Jays Cubs Game 2 interleague series Patrick Corbin Vladimir Guerrero Jr back issue George Springer Colin Rea Kevin Gausman Ben Brown