The Toronto Blue Jays became the first team in the American League to punch their ticket to October with an 8-5 victory Sunday over the Kansas City Royals, but more work remains with just six games remaining in the regular season.
The top spot in both the division and American League are still in play, along with a wild card-round bye that would see the Blue Jays through to the ALDS for the first time since 2016.
This is just the first step. There's more to accomplish.
— Toronto Blue Jays (@BlueJays) September 21, 2025
But for now...a toast 🍻 pic.twitter.com/0V4m99l6rd
Entering Monday at 90-66, the Blue Jays’ magic number for the AL East sits at four, with a 2.0 game lead over the New York Yankees (88-68) and a 5.0 game lead over the Boston Red Sox (85-71).
Any number of Toronto wins combined with Yankee losses adding up to that magic number will lock up the Jays’ first division title since 2015.
Toronto returns home for a three-game series against the Red Sox on Tuesday, before closing out the regular season with a weekend set against the Tampa Bay Rays.
Like the Blue Jays, the Yankees are off on Monday as they make the trip back to the Bronx for a six-game homestand.
New York will host the AL-worst Chicago White Sox in a series beginning Tuesday, before welcoming the Baltimore Orioles to town over the weekend to close out the regular season.
The earliest date that could see the Blue Jays clinch the division title is Wednesday. In that scenario, Toronto would have to take the first two games of the series against the Red Sox, while New York will need to drop consecutive contests against the White Sox to open their three-game set.
Holding head-to-head tiebreakers over both the Yankees and Red Sox, the Blue Jays are projected to have an 86.2 per cent chance to win the AL East, according to FanGraphs.
