Blue Jays Push for ALDS Sweep as Yankees Face Elimination in Game 3
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The Toronto Blue Jays came out swinging (literally) in this American League Divisional Series against the New York Yankees. The first two games they put up 23 runs on the Yankees at Rogers Centre. Now they are in New York looking to close out this series in a sweeping and dominating fashion.
Looking back at the regular season the Blue Jays have been far superior over the Yankees. The two matched up seven times this summer and Tornoto took both series after losing only one game during that stretch. The Yankees have won that lone time in the last nine matchups and now with the stakes even higher they are crumbling.
The Blue Jays are without one of their best offensive weapons, Bo Bichette, but the ballclub is not struggling to put runs up on the board. Imagine trying to stop this team when he returns. For now the team will try to close this out, and that starts with the matchup that is going to happen on the mound between Shane Bieber and Carlos Rodón.
Bieber vs. Rodón Tonight
Toronto is sending Shane Bieber out of the dugout tonight, and if you look at the matchup, it seems that New York has the upper hand, but that isn't necessarily the case. Bieber spent most of the year recovering from his Tommy John surgery and was brought back slowly in order for him to be available when it mattered the most, like today.
Bieber has only made seven starts since returning to the major league mound, but in that time he has struck out 37 batters. The former CY Young award winner has made three starts on the road so far this year and is 2-1 with 19 strikeouts in that time. He is an excellent choice to close this series out.
Blue Jays pitchers with 9+ strikeouts and 0 walks in their debut: Shane Bieber. That's it. #lightsupletsgo pic.twitter.com/1pJtKrnQJs
— Toronto Blue Jays (@BlueJays) August 23, 2025
Rodón has more experience this year and a lot of confidence as one of the best that the Yankees have to offer as they fight to stay alive. He finished the regular season 18-9 on the year with over 200 strikeouts as one of 11 in the majors to finish with more than 200.
This will be the second start of this postseason for the New York starter, as he took the mound against the Boston Red Sox, where he allowed three earned runs (one homer) and walked three.
This could be a great matchup to watch or it could look a whole lot like the first two games. The Blue Jays are more than capable of running away with this series and getting into the AL Championship game.
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Maddy Dickens resides in Loveland, Colorado. She grew up with two older brothers, where their lives revolved around sports. She earned a master's degree in business management from Tarleton State University while simultaneously playing basketball and competing in rodeo at the collegiate level. She successfully parlayed a reserve national championship into a professional rodeo career and now stays involved in upper-level athletics by writing for On SI on several different MLB teams' pages, along with some NCAA sites.