Blue Jays and Orioles Face Off in Critical AL East Matchup on Monday

There are just three games around MLB on the final Monday night of the regular season, and only one of them has any potential bearing on the postseason field: Toronto Blue Jays (77-79) at Baltimore Orioles (75-81). Both are still alive for the AL's final wild-card spot, but barely, and tonight's loser can pretty much forget about extra baseball. Bet $5+ on any of Monday's games and get $200 in bonus bets when you bet at DraftKings Sportsbook:

It's a 6:35 p.m. ET first pitch from Camden Yards. Not great hitting weather, with winds blowing in about 8 mph and highs only around 70. There is split action on the money line with Baltimore a slight favorite, but solid action on the Over 7.5.

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Blue Jays vs. Orioles MLB same-game parlay

- Toronto alt +1.5 - Under 1.5 second-inning runs - Alt Under 9.5

FanDuel SGP price: +134 (subject to change)

The Chicago White Sox had led the AL Central most of the summer but now are second in that division while holding the junior circuit's No. 6 seed by three games over Toronto and Houston and five on Baltimore. The Pale Hose are +110 favorites for that spot, with the Blue Jays at +1800 and Orioles +10000 – Baltimore trails this season series 6-4.

So, yeah, it's an extreme long shot anyway for these two, and either Toronto or Baltimore would have to win out at this point most likely for any shot. The Orioles, whose magic number to be eliminated is two (can't happen before Tuesday), already have caught one break in this series in that the Jays announced ace Dylan Cease , who likely finishes second in the AL Cy Young voting, will not make his scheduled turn Wednesday due to shoulder discomfort that will require an MRI. Cease didn't look right in Friday's loss to Texas, and it sounds like the only way he pitches now would be in a must-win game this weekend vs. Cincinnati, if even then.

Other than Cease, the Toronto rotation has largely been an injury-ravaged disappointment this season, and that includes righty Trey Yesavage (5-5, 3.65 ERA), who was among the AL Rookie of the Year favorites in the spring after shining late last regular season and into the playoffs. But he has been limited to 93.2 big-league innings in 2026 and will be activated off the injured list (knee) for his first big-league outing since Aug. 4.

Yesavage is expected to throw three innings and approximately 40-50 pitches after tossing 34 in his lone rehab start with Triple-A Buffalo. He has faced the Orioles twice this year and is 0-1 with a 5.91 ERA in 10.2 innings. We should note that Jays star Vladimir Guerrero Jr. , who is having a disappointing year, left Sunday's game with lower back troubles. Myles Straw entered the game in his place.

Will Blue Jays manager John Schneider return in 2027 after this disappointing campaign? No official world yet, but Orioles president of baseball operations Mike Elias recently said that manager Craig Albernaz will return for Year 2. Elias did add that changes would be coming to the front office, though; that's assuming ownership doesn't dump Elias himself.

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Maybe the Orioles wouldn't be under .500 if they had All-Star closer Felix Bautista this season. He was activated from the injured list on Saturday and pitched Sunday for the first time in the big leagues since July 20, 2025, due to right shoulder surgery. The bullpen was a problem without him. The O's signed free-agent Ryan Helsley to a two-year, $28 million deal to fill in as the closer, but he made only 17 appearances because of two stints on the injured list with elbow injuries. Helsley, whose season is over, had eight saves and a 4.11 ERA in 15.1 innings.

It's another disappointing offseason addition starting on the mound tonight in righty Shane Baz (6-15, 4.11 ERA) – he's tied for the big-league lead in losses and has been the least profitable starter in the majors. If you wagered $100 on Baltimore to win each of Baz's 30 starts, you would be down $1m328. Baz really hasn't been that bad usually but has gotten only 3.35 runs of support per nine innings, third-fewest in the majors.

He won his lone start vs. the Blue Jays on June 7 in Toronto, allowing five runs but just one earned over 5.2 innings in a loss. The model forecasts Baz at 5.7 innings, 5.1 strikeouts, 5.9 hits allowed and 2.4 earned runs.

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Baltimore's last gasp appeared to be Sunday's 3-0 home loss to the Brewers as they were swept in the three games. I generally don't back road teams, but in reality only the Blue Jays have a shot at the playoffs. Hopefully they play like that tonight – although a one-run loss is fine. I prefer Under 1.5 runs in the second inning, when it's near the bottom of the lineup ideally. The SportsLine Projection Model has the Blue Jays prevailing 4.2-4.0.   Check out other expert picks in the SportsLine daily newsletter .

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_Originally reported by [CBS Sports](https://www.cbssports.com/betting/news/blue-jays-vs-orioles-mlb-picks-losing-al-east-team-monday-can-all-but-forget-about-postseason-baseball/)._