TORONTO — The Blue Jays are one win shy of their first American League Championship Series appearance in nearly a decade. The Yankees have their backs against the wall again, already facing another win-or-go-home situation.

The stakes are high in the AL Division Series, which shifts to New York for Game 3 on Tuesday night. The series has been all Toronto thus far, as the Blue Jays jumped out to a 2-0 lead by outscoring the Yanks, 23-8, across the first two games at Rogers Centre over the weekend.

In postseason history, all teams taking a 2-0 lead in any best-of-five series have gone on to win that series 80 of 90 times (88.9%). In Division Series with the current 2-2-1 format, teams to win both Games 1 and 2 at home have advanced 31 of 34 times (91.2%), including 20 sweeps. The most recent comeback in both situations came in the 2017 ALDS, when the Yankees rallied past Cleveland.

The Blue Jays, who haven’t reached the ALCS since 2016, aren’t looking past the Yanks, though.

“As far as I’m concerned, it’s 0-0,” outfielder George Springer said. “That’s a great team. I know it. They know it. This whole locker room knows it. So it’s about getting after it on Tuesday. And 0-0, and we’re ready to go.”

Last week, New York lost Game 1 of its AL Wild Card Series vs. Boston before winning both Games 2 and 3 to advance. An ALDS comeback will be more challenging, though not impossible.

“Baseball is a funny game,” manager Aaron Boone said. “I know we’ll show up and be ready to go expecting to win Tuesday night. Obviously, it feels like the world’s caving in around you, you lose two games like that in their building where it doesn’t go right. But all of a sudden, you go out there and win a ballgame on Tuesday, the needle can change.”

When is the game and how can I watch it?
First pitch is scheduled for 8:08 p.m. ET on Tuesday at Yankee Stadium and can be seen in the United States on FS1.

Blue Jays fans in Canada can tune in via Sportsnet and Sportsnet+ for the broadcast with Buck Martinez, Dan Shulman and Hazel Mae, or listen to the radio call with Ben Shulman and Chris Leroux on Sportsnet 590 The FAN.

All series are available in the US on MLB.TV with authentication to a participating Pay TV provider. Games also are available live internationally, although not in Canada. Sportsnet is MLB’s exclusive English language broadcaster in Canada for every Postseason game, while TVA Sports will be covering the entire AL Postseason and the World Series in French and Broadcaster RDS will cover the entire NL Postseason in French.

Who are the starting pitchers?
Blue Jays: This is exactly what the Blue Jays dreamed of when they made Shane Bieber (4-2, 3.57 ERA) the biggest splash of their 2025 Trade Deadline. The former AL Cy Young Award winner has bounced back from Tommy John surgery well and used the tail end of the regular season to get back in the groove, but this will be his biggest test yet.

Toronto chose to use Trey Yesavage in Game 2 and Bieber in Game 3 to give the veteran the ball at Yankee Stadium, which can be a “hostile environment” as manager John Schneider put it. Bieber has pitched there in the postseason before, striking out seven over 5 2/3 innings of two-run ball in Game 2 of the 2022 ALDS, so this won’t be anything new to h

Rodón has worked hard this season to refine the mental part of his game, which he says helps him maintain his composure in stressful situations. There’s no challenge like the one he faces on Tuesday, with little margin for error in front of a home crowd that figures to be on the edge of their seats with every pitch.

“The energy is a lot more heightened. It’s really fun,” Rodón said. “It’s a treat to be able to step on the mound in Yankee Stadium during the playoffs

Blue Jays: Toronto faced another lefty in Max Fried on Sunday and that lineup put up 13 runs, so why tinker with a good thing? You could see something very similar to that group in the potential clinch game on Tuesday:

1. George Springer, DH
2. Davis Schneider, LF
3. Vladimir Guerrero Jr., 1B
4. Alejandro Kirk, C
5. Daulton Varsho, CF
6. Ernie Clement, 3B
7. Isiah Kiner-Falefa, 2B
8. Andrés Giménez, SS
9. Myles Straw, RF

10. Yankees: The Yanks used the same batting order against right-handed starters in Games 1 and 2, though one change Boone might entertain is bumping Grisham out of the leadoff spot. He’s 3-for-20 (.150) with eight strikeouts in the playoffs.
11. Trent Grisham, CF
12. Aaron Judge, RF
13. Cody Bellinger, LF
14. Ben Rice, 1B
15. Giancarlo Stanton, DH
16. Jazz Chisholm Jr., 2B
17. Ryan McMahon, 3B
18. Anthony Volpe, SS
19. Austin Wells,
20. Blue Jays: The ‘pen stumbled in Game 2, allowing the score to look a little closer than the game actually felt. Justin Bruihl, Eric Lauer and Tommy Nance all allowed runs, but none of the three are considered high-leverage arms at this point. Louis Varland seems to be peaking at the right time, while Seranthony Domínguez and Jeff Hoffman are still fresh, so despite the numbers on Sunday, the Blue Jays enter Game 3 with their big dogs ready. Yankees: Will Warren threw 84 pitches of long relief during the Game 2 blowout, while Luke Weaver threw just one pitch. In Game 1, the Yanks used Weaver (10 pitches), Fernando Cruz (16), Camilo Doval (20), Tim Hill (21) and Paul Blackburn (36). David Bednar and Devin Williams are relatively fresh; they haven’t pitched since the Boston series.
21. Blue Jays: Bo Bichette is still rehabbing from a left-knee sprain, and while he’s eyeing a return for a potential ALCS, there’s still not much of a timeline given that he hasn’t started running. Chris Bassitt was also left off this roster as he was still building up from some minor back inflammation late in the season, but for the most part, the Blue Jays are a healthy team that could take a major step if they keep this thing going long enough to get Bichette back.
22. Yankees: Bellinger has been playing through a sore left heel that bothers him most when he decelerates. The state of Judge’s right elbow was a topic throughout the Wild Card Series, as Boston looked for opportunities to test Judge’s throwing. He’s uncorked a few of his strongest throws since the injury already during this series.
23. Blue Jays: Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is on fire. After hitting the first grand slam in Blue Jays postseason history in Game 2, he’s now 6-for-9 with two home runs and six RBIs in this young series. Daulton Varsho is right there with him after launching two home runs and two doubles in Game 2, giving the Blue Jays an incredibly valuable source of secondary offense behind the heart of the order. This is the best their lineup has looked all season at just the right time. In the bullpen, Varland’s emergence cannot be overstated, pumping a 90-mph knuckle curve behind a 101-mph fastball. Ahead of closer Hoffman, Varland will be handed the biggest moments possible.

    Yankees: Judge is 8-for-18 (.444) with two RBIs this postseason, but he has just one extra-base hit — an eighth-inning double in Game 1, when the score was lopsided. Volpe is second on the team with five playoff hits, while Bellinger leads the club with four RBIs. Stanton is 3-for-20 (.150) with five strikeouts as he searches for October magic.

    Anything else fans might want to know?
    Blue Jays: The Blue Jays have scored 23 runs this series, the most over a team’s first two games of a single postseason in MLB history.

    Yankees: During the regular season, the Yanks had a 50-31 record at home, third best in the AL behind Toronto (54-27) and Seattle (51-30).