Blue Jays – Toronto return to the Bronx for a first-ever rematch since its four-game ALDS win, but the regular-season gap is wide and several expected starters are new to the roster. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. insists the past stays in the past as both teams chase momentum in
DETROIT — The last time the Toronto Blue Jays and New York Yankees met in the postseason. it ended in a sweep of sorts: a four-game Division Series win for Toronto in their first-ever postseason matchup.. Back then. the celebration was immediate and loud inside Yankee Stadium. including Blue Jays players popping champagne alongside staff and families after the series concluded.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. even took a moment from the clubhouse to remind Derek Jeter who won and who lost during a post-game appearance last October.
Seven months later, that same scene is being replayed in a different key.. The Blue Jays return to the Bronx for the first time since that playoff win. but the rosters look changed and the standings do not favor them.. The Yankees sit at 28-19. 6.5 games ahead of the 21-25 Blue Jays. one year after both teams posted identical 94-68 records.
Still, the teams are treating it like regular season baseball, not a continuation of last year’s October. Blue Jays players made it clear they aren’t measuring this week against 2025’s outcome.
“It’s in the past,” Guerrero Jr. said through interpreter Hector Lebron. “We as a team are very focused on trying to win the series. That’s all we have in mind right now.”
Kevin Gausman acknowledged the obvious familiarity of Yankee Stadium, calling last year’s visit “a great time.” Beating the Yankees there, he said, is always fun. But he framed the series as a test against a strong opponent rather than a chance to relive history.
“I think we’ve done a good job of turning the page,” Gausman said. “It’s a new year, you know? We can be excited about that, but we’ve got to be ready for them. They’re a really good team.”
Manager John Schneider put it even more directly: “Last year’s over.” He added, “Yeah, it was fun, but it’s a totally different season and a totally different group of guys.”
That sense of change comes through in who’s expected to take the mound.. Three of the four pitchers likely to start against the Yankees weren’t on Toronto’s roster last fall.. Trey Yesavage was a Wednesday starter last October against the Yankees, though not at Yankee Stadium.. Dylan Cease, Patrick Corbin, and Rule 5 pick Spencer Miles were with other organizations during 2025.
Cease said pitching at Yankee Stadium, or Dodger Stadium, can feel different than a place like Miami, but he insisted preparation won’t shift.
“I’m just going there to do my best to win,” Cease said, adding he didn’t watch the ALDS at all. “I don’t really care about any of the other stuff. I’ve pitched there before. I’ve pitched against the Yankees a bunch. It’s really the same thing, just a new uniform and a new team to fight for.”
Even so, he still appreciates the setting.
“It’s different in a good way, honestly,” Cease said. “It’s a big stage. You feel the energy. I personally like it. You can really feed off of that when it’s intense.”
For Miles, the experience is entirely fresh. He made his MLB debut in March and is expected to handle bulk duties Thursday opposite Carlos Rodon. The prospect of pitching at Yankee Stadium is the kind of challenge he’s openly eager for.
“Absolutely,” Miles said. “Of course I’m looking forward to that. First time pitching at Yankee Stadium. That’s going to be epic. Whatever it is, I’ll answer the call.”
Toronto also faces a potential mismatch in innings and matchup planning with Adam Macko, who hasn’t yet made his MLB debut. That leaves room for the possibility of a tougher ask against a Yankees lineup built to capitalize.
Macko said his confidence comes from shutting down elite hitters at the World Baseball Classic while playing for Team Canada in March, including retiring Aaron Judge.
Corbin, meanwhile, described watching parts of last fall’s ALDS “here and there,” even while knowing back then he wouldn’t be pitching for the Blue Jays. He said he’s followed the Yankees’ early success casually a year later, and now expects the week to be a test.
“They’ve gotten off to a great start,” Corbin said. “We’re going through some stuff here. But the guys in this clubhouse are confident. It’s going to be a test.”
For Guerrero Jr., the matchup carries extra weight. He has video game numbers against a team he once said he’d never play for, “not even dead.” In the Bronx, Guerrero Jr. has 16 home runs and 30 RBI in 48 games, posting a .308 batting average and a 1.002 OPS.
There are signs his swing is tightening as the series approaches. After his first home run in nearly a month Sunday, Schneider noted the timing could line up with the environment.
“I hope so,” Schneider said. “When you’re in a certain place or city or atmosphere, yeah, sometimes that plays into it. I think he’s getting pretty close.”
The Blue Jays’ offensive challenges, however, go beyond one player. Even if Yankee Stadium offers a boost, the team ranks last in the American League in on-base percentage while the Yankees are first.
With Ryan Weathers, Will Warren, Cam Schlittler, and Rodon set to pitch for the Yankees, Toronto’s hitters are facing a sequence of tough tests.
And the stadium atmosphere itself is expected to bring another shift. The Yankees’ crowd will likely be louder than it was when the Blue Jays silenced their fans last fall.
Whatever happens during the series, the Blue Jays are clearly stepping into a new version of the matchup. Corbin summed up the approach with a blunt reminder that the past can’t be carried into the present: “eventually you’ve got to turn the page and move forward.”
Schneider returned to the same theme after describing both sides of Yankee Stadium — the fun and the not-so-fun.
“The last time we were there it was fun,” Schneider said. “We’ve also been there when it’s been not so fun. You can’t go in there just expecting cool stuff to happen. You’ve got to go make it happen.”
The relationship between the series’ memory and the current reality is hard to miss: the Blue Jays’ last ALDS run in the Bronx featured a four-game Toronto win and a celebration that included champagne. but this time the Yankees lead 6.5 games in the regular-season standings and Toronto is entering with a notably different pitching group. with three of four likely starters not on the roster in 2025.
Blue Jays Yankees ALDS Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Kevin Gausman John Schneider Spencer Miles Trey Yesavage Dylan Cease Patrick Corbin Adam Macko Carlos Rodon Ryan Weathers Will Warren Cam Schlittler