Blue Jays prepare for playoffs

Sep 26, 2016 | Sports

By Kylie Vaillancourt

The Toronto Blue Jays have been through many ups and downs this season: bench clearing brawls, injury upon injury and a 19-inning game has made this a season to remember.

The Jays have been struggling during the past month of their season. They’ve got a hold of top wildcard spot and are preparing for the playoffs now.

“I feel pretty good about the wildcard game and postseason. This team seems to thrive in situations where their backs are against the wall,” said 25-year-old Brittany Dainard.

Toronto is currently a game and a half  ahead of Baltimore for the top wildcard spot. The Detroit Tigers are a game and a half behind them. This will allow Toronto to have home field advantage for the wildcard game.

“I’m a bit nervous about the upcoming wildcard and postseason because it depends on what team the Blue Jays face,” said 19-year-old Abdiwahid Gureye. “I think they would rather play the Orioles than the Tigers because of how it’s one game and the Tigers will likely pick Justin Verlander. They Jays would struggle getting points.”

September was the worst month for the team this season with 12 losses out of 22 games.

“As of lately, they’re playing really well. Especially the starting pitchers. The team struggled to score some runs earlier in the month but arguably the team’s best player in the lineup, Jose Bautista, has played much better scoring timely runs,” said Gureye.

“They thrive off of the energy at the Rogers Centre, so as long as we’re loud and they want it, we’ve got this,” said Dainard.

The players look out fans for motivation and support.

“The fans have seen such memorable things, they’ve been a part of this journey with the team and will be here no matter the outcome because true fans support their team through the bad and the good and this season certainly has had a lot of both,” said 18-year-old Jessica Booth.