Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh hits a two-run home run in the ninth inning against the Detroit Tigers during Game 3 of the ALDS at Comerica Park.Rick Osentoski/Reuters
The Toronto Blue Jays are into the American League Championship Series for the first time since 2016, but they don’t know their opponent quite yet.
Fresh off eliminating the New York Yankees on Wednesday in Game 4 of the American League Division Series, the Blue Jays will face either the Seattle Mariners or the Detroit Tigers, who need a Game 5 Friday in Seattle to decide who will advance.
The winner of that contest will make the long haul to Toronto, where the Jays will host the first two games of the best-of-seven ALCS at Rogers Centre, Sunday and Monday.
Whomever advances, they will look to slow a Blue Jays team that is cooking offensively. The Jays lead the MLB postseason in runs (34), batting average (.338) and home runs (nine). Three Jays are among the top five in postseason batting average: Ernie Clement (.643); Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (529); and Daulton Varsho (.438).
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Blue Jays manager John Schneider took some risks for the ALDS against New York. Fresh-faced rookie Trey Yesavage landed on the roster ahead of veterans Max Scherzer and Chris Bassitt. Eight relievers threw a bullpen game in the series-clinching Game 4. Toronto’s hotly anticipated ALCS roster will be due on Sunday. Whether those pitchers could resurface is a question, as is the readiness of Bo Bichette.
Here’s how the American League’s top-seeded Blue Jays (94-68, first in AL East; 54-27 at home, 40-41 on the road) match up with each of their potential opponents.
Detroit Tigers
(87-75, second in AL Central; 46-35 at home, 41-40 on the road)
The Jays had a 4-3 record against the Tigers during the 2025 season. They earned one win in their three-game set in May at Rogers Centre and took three of their four meetings at Comerica Park in July. In those games, Toronto outscored Detroit 35-26.
The Tigers were front-runners in the AL Central all season long – and contenders for the No. 1 seed in the American League, too. But they stumbled down the stretch and went 6-15 in their last 21 games, fumbling away the division title to the Cleveland Guardians. Detroit barely hung on to the last wild card spot on the final weekend of the season.
Yet Detroit got its revenge by beating Cleveland in the AL Wild Card series. The Tigers have regained their form against the Mariners in the ALDS.
Javier Báez celebrates after hitting a two-run home run for his Detroit Tigers while running past Seattle Mariners first baseman Josh Naylor (12) during the sixth inning of Game 4 of the ALDS on Wednesday.Ryan Sun/The Associated Press
Detroit ace Tarik Skubal will start Game 5 against Seattle, so the Jays wouldn’t need to face the AL Cy Young Award favourite early in their series. He posted a 13-6 record alongside a 2.21 ERA with 241 strikeouts in 2025. He has a postseason-leading 23 punchouts.
Toronto faced Skubal once in 2025 – in late July – when the right-hander pitched six scoreless innings, allowed five hits, three walks and punched out seven, before the Jays scored six runs over the last two innings to win 6-1.
Detroit’s Javier Báez has nine hits in the postseason – tied with Toronto’s Guerrero and Clement for second among all hitters – behind only New York’s Aaron Judge.
The Tigers and Jays have never met in the postseason.
Seattle Mariners
(90-72, first in AL West; 51-30 at home, 39-42 on the road)
The Jays went 4-2 against the Mariners this year. They dropped two of three games to the visiting Mariners in April before sweeping Seattle at T-Mobile Park in May.
Toronto outscored Seattle 31–24 over their six meetings in 2025.
After missing the playoffs in each of the previous two seasons, the Mariners won 90 games in 2025 to earn their first American League West title since 2001.
Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Luis Castillo gestures after being relieved during the fifth inning in Game 2 of their ALDS against the Detroit Tigers on Sunday.Lindsey Wasson/The Associated Press
Seattle’s success was thanks to Cal Raleigh’s historic season and a strong pitching staff.
The 28-year-old switch-hitting catcher had an MLB-leading 60 home runs, alongside 125 RBIs. Nicknamed “Big Dumper”, he’s a favourite for the AL MVP award. That helped the Mariners to a team total 238 homers this year, third best in the majors.
Seattle’s No. 1 starter Bryan Woo was left off the ALDS roster with a pectoral injury, but his status for the ALCS is TBA. Along with Luis Castillo and Logan Gilbert, the Jays could face three ace-like pitchers.
These two teams last clashed in the 2022 AL Wildcard, one of the most gut-wrenching memories in Blue Jays playoff history. The Mariners swept the Jays 2-0 that year, punctuated by an astonishing 10-9 win that saw the M’s erase an 8-1 Blue Jays lead.