Blue Jays Notebook: Will Davis Schneider get Game 1 start?

TORONTO – Just a few weeks ago, the Toronto Blue Jays still hadn't won a single playoff game in nine years.

Since then, they've beaten the Yankees 3-1 in the ALDS and the Mariners 4-3 in the ALCS, defeating the two winningest teams in the American League (other than themselves) en route to the World Series.

For a team that lost 88 games last year and subsequently missed out on some top free agent targets, it's been a remarkable turnaround. 

"You never know where the game's going to take you," said Blue Jays manager John Schneider. "You never know when you're going to acquire Shane Bieber, you never know when you're going to acquire Max Scherzer, you never know when George (Springer) is going to hit 32 homers in the regular season, you never know when Vlad (Guerrero Jr.) is going to earn a half a billion dollars. 

"Where we've ended up, man, is pretty cool."

A season that began back in February now stretches into late October. In fact, the Blue Jays have played for so long that they might even get their star shortstop back from a significant knee injury. 

As the focus gradually shifts from an epic ALCS Game 7 to the beginning of the 2025 World Series, here are some assorted thoughts on the American League champions:

• No matter how the 2025 World Series ends, two players are assured of getting World Series rings: infielder Buddy Kennedy and pitcher Jose Ureña. Both played for the Dodgers and the Blue Jays, though neither player had a particularly significant role on either team.

• That pairing illustrates just how many players are required to get through a full 162-game season. Others who suited up for the 2025 Blue Jays include Will Robertson, Ali Sanchez, Casey Lawrence, Richard Lovelady and Lazaro Estrada. But each contribution mattered in a season where the Blue Jays won the AL East via tiebreaker over the Yankees.

• Two logical candidates to throw out the first pitch of Game 1 of the World Series Friday: Cito Gaston and Joe Carter. 

• Both Shohei Ohtani and Roki Sasaki were legitimately intrigued by the Blue Jays' free agent pitches, with Ohtani visiting the team's complex in Dunedin, Fla., two winters ago and Sasaki visiting Rogers Centre first-hand this January. Both players chose the Dodgers, but they'll get to see first-hand what the Blue Jays were pitching them on: World Series baseball at Rogers Centre.

And while Ohtani has heard boos here before, it'll be the first ever appearance in Toronto for Sasaki, the hard-throwing rookie who has saved three Dodgers wins this month.

• It's probably time for Davis Schneider to start plugging Blake Snell into the Trajekt pitching machine at Rogers Centre. Against the Mariners' righty-heavy pitching staff, Schneider batted just five times in seven ALCS games, going hitless while walking once. But the Blue Jays hit Schneider second against Yankees lefties Max Fried and Carlos Rodon in the division series, so he could get a start against Snell in Game 1.

• If Trey Yesavage makes a World Series start, it will be his fourth of the post-season, surpassing his regular-season total of three. That’s seven total starts at the MLB level, matching the most Yesavage made at any level during his remarkable ascent through the Blue Jays’ farm system this season. “You can really tell that he’s going to be here for a long time,” catcher Alejandro Kirk said of Yesavage recently.

• While it's hard to quantify, George Springer is having a positive influence on other hitters in the Blue Jays lineup. Because Springer and No. 3 hitter Vladimir Guerrero Jr. both bat from the right side, left-handed hitting No. 2 hitter Nathan Lukes ends up seeing lots of right-handed pitching, putting him in an advantageous position. 

Springer also reaches base a lot, and if he's occupying first, it's much harder for opposing managers to walk Guerrero Jr. intentionally. That means more pitches to hit for one of MLB’s hottest hitters.

• Despite his resume, it’s fair to say no one expected this much production from a 36-year-old Springer, whose .959 OPS ranked third in all of baseball behind only Aaron Judge and Ohtani. In fact, that even includes the Blue Jays, who didn’t see this coming, even if they’ve always had Springer’s back.

Seven of the first nine times Springer played this season, he was batting sixth. Six months later, there's no way the Blue Jays would hit Springer that low in the order. He's simply too productive to minimize his plate appearances like that. 

• Along with veteran pitchers Kevin Gausman, Chris Bassitt and Jeff Hoffman, Springer was essential to the Blue Jays’ late-inning comeback Tuesday. All four of those players were acquired via free agency, a reminder of how beneficial it can be to reinforce rosters with quality free agents.

• At times this season, Hoffman has looked like one of the game's best relievers and at times he's been homer-prone. In six post-season games, he's been dominant with one run allowed in 7.1 innings and 12 strikeouts compared to two walks.

• While Shane Bieber wasn't at his sharpest in Game 7, he's still the best starting pitcher who was traded at this summer's deadline. In fact, it's not particularly close. Not much pitching was moved, and the likes of Merrill Kelly (4.23 ERA in 55.1 innings), Zack Littell (4.39 ERA in 53.1 innings), Adrian Houser (4.79 ERA in 56.1 innings) and Dustin May (5.49 ERA in 28.1 innings) simply weren't as effective. 

Plus, none of those pitchers made playoff starts, while Bieber has made three and counting. In a weak summer market for starting pitching, the Blue Jays found a difference maker (3.57 ERA in 40.1 regular-season innings, 4.38 ERA in 12.1 playoff innings).

• It's great news for the Blue Jays that Bo Bichette says he's ready to go. His bat would make a big difference for a team that's already down Anthony Santander.

Yet the last time Bichette played a defensive inning was Sept. 6 in New York. After a month and a half on the sidelines, it appears unrealistic that he could be a viable defensive option in the biggest games of the year. He has yet to take ground balls at game speed, and accelerating to full readiness by Friday may be a stretch. 

“He's done some light stuff, but hasn't been like full go at short,” Schneider said.

But even making that assumption, it would be a real success if Bichette could come back as a DH option.

• Rostering Bichette would either cost the Blue Jays a pitcher or their last bench player, possibly Joey Loperfido, who appeared in just one ALCS game.

• We say 'the Blue Jays are going to the World Series,' but in fact it's the World Series that’s coming to Toronto. Because the Blue Jays won more regular-season games than the Dodgers, they have home-field advantage. That allows the Blue Jays to spend the next few days at home while the rest of the baseball world travels to Canada.