Toronto Blue Jays
(29-33)Jun 3L@ Braves3-7
Jun 2L@ Braves3-4
May 31L@ Orioles5-9
May 30L@ Orioles5-6
May 29W@ Orioles6-5
Atlanta Braves
(42-20)Jun 3Wvs Blue Jays7-3
Jun 2Wvs Blue Jays4-3
May 31L@ Reds4-6
May 30W@ Reds5-2
May 29W@ Reds8-3
Asking a reliever to navigate the Braves lineup multiple times isn't a plan, it's a hope. Toronto's rotation has been gutted — Scherzer, Cease, Bieber, Berrios, Francis are all on the IL — so the bullpen game isn't really a strategic choice. It's the only choice. Whoever follows Fluharty needs to eat the bulk of the night without letting Atlanta blow it open early.
Toronto Blue Jays
(19)- Day-To-DayGeovanny Jesus Planchart (C) — no05/08
- Day-To-DayChay Yeager (RP) — Yeager will undergo season-ending UCL surgery on his right elbow Wednesday, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.05/08
- Day-To-DayCJ Stubbs (C) — The Blue Jays signed Stubbs to a minor-league contract Friday that includes an invitation to spring training.05/08
- Day-To-DayJaven Coleman (P) — no05/08
- 10-Day-ILAddison Barger (RF) — Barger (elbow) has been hitting in the batting cage at Toronto's complex in Dunedin, Florida, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.05/30
- 10-Day-ILLenyn Sosa (2B) — Sosa went 2-for-5 with a solo home run, an additional run and an additional RBI on Saturday against the Twins in an 11-4 victory.05/28
- 15-Day-ILMax Scherzer (SP) — Scherzer (forearm/ankle/thumb) expects to make his next rehab start with Triple-A Buffalo on Friday, Mitch Bannon of The Athletic reports.06/02
- 15-Day-ILTommy Nance (RP) — Nance (forearm) threw live batting practice Tuesday, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.06/02
- 15-Day-ILDylan Cease (SP) — Cease (hamstring) is expected to make a rehab start at Triple-A Buffalo on Thursday, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.06/02
- developmental listFernando Perez (P)
- 60-Day-ILJoe Mantiply (RP) — Mantiply will undergo arthroscopic surgery to repair some damage in his left knee, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.06/04
- 60-Day-ILAlejandro Kirk (C) — Kirk (thumb) could be activated from the injured list early next week, with Blue Jays manager John Schneider indicating the catcher would need about 20 at-bats on his rehab assignment before being ready to rejoin the lineup, Mitch Bannon of The Athletic reports.06/03
- 60-Day-ILLazaro Estrada (RP) — Estrada (shoulder) yielded one run on three walks over 2.1 innings in his first rehab start with Triple-A Buffalo on Tuesday.06/03
- 60-Day-ILYimi Garcia (RP) — Garcia (elbow) will begin a rehab assignment at Single-A Dunedin on Wednesday, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.06/02
- 60-Day-ILShane Bieber (SP) — Bieber (elbow) struck out two batters and was charged with five earned runs on six hits and no walks across 2.1 innings in his rehab start Sunday with Single-A Dunedin.06/01
- 60-Day-ILJose Berrios (SP) — Blue Jays manager John Schneider said that Berrios underwent full Tommy John surgery Wednesday in addition to having a stress fracture repaired, Hazel Mae of Sportsnet reports.05/27
- 60-Day-ILAnthony Santander (RF) — Toronto transferred Santander (shoulder) from the 10-day injured list to the 60-day IL on Sunday.05/08
- 60-Day-ILCody Ponce (SP) — Ponce underwent surgery Friday to repair the ACL in his right knee, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.05/08
- 60-Day-ILBowden Francis (SP) — The Blue Jays placed Francis (elbow) on the 60-day injured list Wednesday.05/08
Atlanta Braves
(11)- Day-To-DayBlake Burkhalter (RP) — Triple-A Gwinnett placed Burkhalter on the 7-day injured list March 27 with back spasms, Jonathan Mayo of MLB Pipeline reports.05/08
- 10-Day-ILDrake Baldwin (C) — Atlanta manager Walt Weiss said Tuesday that Baldwin (oblique) could be activated from the 10-day injured list during the team's June 16-21 homestand, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports.06/02
- 10-Day-ILKyle Farmer (DH) — Farmer went 1-for-3 with a double, a run scored and two RBI in Sunday's rout of the Guardians.05/18
- suspensionJurickson Profar (LF) — Profar will miss the full 2026 season after the appeal of his 162-game PED suspension was denied Thursday, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.05/08
- 60-Day-ILSean Murphy (C) — Murphy had the cast on his left hand removed Tuesday and is now wearing a splint to protect his fractured middle finger, Grant McAuley of the Marietta Daily Journal reprots.06/04
- 60-Day-ILHurston Waldrep (SP) — Waldrep (elbow) allowed no hits and walked two batters over two scoreless innings during a rehab start Monday in the rookie-level Florida Complex League.06/01
- 60-Day-ILSpencer Schwellenbach (SP) — Schwellenbach (elbow) has begun throwing on flat ground, Chad Bishop of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.05/26
- 60-Day-ILAJ Smith-Shawver (SP) — Manager Walt Weiss said Friday that Smith-Shawver (elbow) has been throwing bullpen sessions, and the next step in his rehab is to face live hitters, Grant McAuley of the Marietta Daily Journal reports.05/22
- 60-Day-ILJoe Jimenez (RP) — Atlanta manager Walt Weiss revealed Wednesday that Jimenez underwent another surgery on his left knee 3-to-4 weeks ago, Grant McAuley of the Marietta Daily Journal reports.05/13
- 60-Day-ILDanny Young (RP) — Atlanta transferred Young (elbow) to the 60-day injured list Saturday.05/08
- 60-Day-ILJoey Wentz (RP) — Atlanta placed Wentz (knee) on the 60-day injured list Tuesday.05/08
The one bit of light for Toronto: Alejandro Kirk is reportedly close to a return, with manager John Schneider saying he needs around 20 rehab at-bats before rejoining the lineup. That doesn't help tonight, but a healthy Kirk behind the plate is the kind of stabilizer this team has been missing. Atlanta, meanwhile, is still without Sean Murphy and Drake Baldwin behind the dish, plus Profar for the full year — and it hasn't mattered one bit.
Bottom line: Sale at home against a patchwork pitching staff is the kind of spot that produces a quiet 6-2 final. If Toronto wants to avoid the sweep, they need Fluharty's opener stint to be clean and somebody — anybody — to make Sale work. Otherwise this is over by the 5th.