{
  "id": 3351354,
  "title": "Blue Jays series preview: Last year’s AL champs",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/25/blue-jays-series-preview-last-years-al-champs",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-08-25T21:11:42.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Yahoo Sports",
    "slug": "yahoo-sports",
    "url": "https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/blue-jays-series-preview-last-211142018.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The Toronto Blue Jays, last year's AL champions, faced a challenging post-season run. They lost 12 of their first 15 games in an attempt to secure another title, a setback that persisted throughout their season. Injuries and a struggling offense have contributed to their decline, as evidenced by their subpar offensive statistics. The Blue Jays rank second-to-last in home runs, third-to-last in on-base percentage, and bottom of the league in runs scored. Only eight players have fewer home runs than Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who leads all rookies with 26 homeruns.\n\nAmong the current lineup, Alejandro Kirk has shown improvement with a .366/.440/.548 batting average over his last 26 games, including five home runs. Vinnie Pasquantino has also rebounded with a .385/.448/.769 average in seven games since returning from the injured list. However, Nathan Lukes and Carter Jensen have struggled, posting a .184/.234/.287 and .122/.280/.220 batting average, respectively, in their recent performances.\n\nNotable matchups include Salvador Perez, who has a career .371/.389/.771 against Blue Jays' pitcher Max Scherzer, with four home runs in 36 plate appearances. Andrés Giménez, on the other hand, has struggled with a .143 batting average in his career against Blue Jays' pitcher Seth Lugo. Spencer Arrighetti has been effective against Royals hitters, with the Blue Jays' bullpen ERA at 3.78. Spencer Miles and Louis Varland are among the relievers with the lowest ERA in baseball, while Spencer Miles has a 1.76 ERA in 36 relief appearances.\n\nThe Blue Jays have acquired Paul Sewald from the Diamondbacks, who previously struggled with the team. While the Blue Jays may not return to the World Series, they are not considered a weak team. The reigning AL champions, the Kansas City Royals, have been impressive, but the Blue Jays could provide a tough test to gauge the consistency of the Royals' success.",
  "summary": "The Jays don’t appear headed back to the World Series.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 3,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Toronto Sun",
        "title": "Time for Blue Jays to prove they’re not among baseball’s lightweights as schedule softens",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/24/time-for-blue-jays-to-prove-theyre-not-among-baseballs-lightweights",
        "published": "2026-08-24T15:45:37.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Winnipeg Free Press",
        "title": "Blue Jays ace Cease has artwork, retail collection launched at Art Gallery of Ontario",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/25/blue-jays-ace-cease-has-artwork-retail-collection-launched-at-art",
        "published": "2026-08-25T17:19:36.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}