Freddy Peralta (5-6, 4.53 ERA) takes the ball for New York opposite Toronto's Braydon Fisher (3-3, 3.48 ERA) in Wednesday's series finale at Rogers Centre, first pitch 3:07 PM ET. Peralta arrived in New York this offseason as the headline acquisition — the guy who went 17-6 with a 2.70 ERA for Milwaukee in 2025 and was supposed to anchor a rotation built to compete. Instead he's been the Mets' biggest disappointment in a season full of them, posting a 7.47 ERA over his previous 6 starts before a semi-decent outing against the Cubs on June 25 (5.2 innings, 5 K, 0 earned runs). Two starts before that, the Phillies tagged him for 10 runs in 2.2 innings — the worst start of his nine-year career.
This is the rubber game of a 3-game set that's been a microcosm of where both clubs stand. Toronto snapped a 6-game losing streak by edging the Mets 2-1 on June 29, then handed it right back with a 3-0 shutout loss on June 30. The Blue Jays came into this series having just dropped six straight to Texas, a skid that erased a Wild Card position they were holding as recently as mid-June. They're 40-46 now and need every win they can manufacture before the deadline reshuffles the board around them.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is the big question mark for Toronto after being scratched from the June 30 lineup with back tightness — the third time the back has flared this month. His status for Canada Day is unclear, and the Blue Jays can't afford to play without him. They already rank dead last in MLB in OPS with runners in scoring position, and that number is propped up in part by Guerrero. Fisher isn't a traditional starter either; his last logged outing was 1.1 innings on June 17 against Boston in what appears to have been another opener-style assignment. Toronto is piecing together a rotation that's missing Berrios (Tommy John, done for the year), Scherzer (back/side, needs rehab starts before returning), and Bowden Francis (elbow, 60-day IL).
- Day-To-DayJackson Cluff SS — The Mets signed Cluff to a minor-league contract Friday with an invitation to spring training.
- Day-To-DayChristian Arroyo 2B — The Mets re-signed Arroyo to a minor-league contract Tuesday.
- Day-To-DayMike Baumann RP — Baumann signed a minor-league deal with the Mets on Wednesday, Michael Mayer of MetsmerizedOnline.com reports.
- Day-To-DayBrandon Waddell RP — Waddell (shoulder) picked up the win after allowing three runs on four hits while striking out two across three innings during Saturday's game against Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes Barre.
- Day-To-DayMike Tauchman RF — Tauchman (knee) is still rehabbing at the Mets' spring training complex and has yet to resume baseball activities, Tim Britton of The Athletic reports.
- Day-To-DayJoe Jacques RP — The Mets signed Jacques to a minor-league contract Wednesday, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.
- Day-To-DayKevin Herget RP — Herget signed a minor league contract that includes an invitation to spring training with the Mets on Thursday, Will Sammon of The Athletic reports.
- Day-To-DayJose Rojas 3B — Triple-A Salt Lake placed Rojas on its COVID-19 injured list Sunday, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.
- Day-To-DayVladimir Guerrero Jr. 1B — Guerrero was scratched from the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Mets due to back tightness.
- Day-To-DayArjun Nimmala SS — The Blue Jays promoted Nimmala from High-A Vancouver to Double-A New Hampshire on Sunday.
- Day-To-DayRJ Schreck LF — Schreck (hand) has gone 2-for-8 with a home run, two RBI and an additional run in two games for Triple-A Buffalo since being reinstated from the 7-day injured list Friday.
- Day-To-DayGeovanny Jesus Planchart C — no
- Day-To-DayChay Yeager RP — Yeager will undergo season-ending UCL surgery on his right elbow Wednesday, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.
- 10-Day-ILAddison Barger RF — Blue Jays manager John Schneider said Monday that Barger (elbow) will be shut down for a couple of weeks after a recent MRI revealed a stress reaction in his back, Keegan Matheson of MLB.com reports.
- 10-Day-ILJesus Sanchez RF — The Blue Jays placed Sanchez on the 10-day injured list Saturday with a right ankle sprain.
- 10-Day-ILLenyn Sosa 2B — Sosa (wrist) will begin a rehab assignment Monday with the Blue Jays' Arizona Complex League affiliate, Mitch Bannon of The Athletic reports.
New York's injury list isn't pretty either. Marcus Semien is on the 10-day IL with a Grade 3 hip flexor strain — minimum 4-to-6 weeks — and Luis Robert Jr. is still working through a rehab assignment after missing months with a back issue. But the louder story in the Mets' dugout is accountability. A former coach recently went public questioning the clubhouse culture around Juan Soto, and Soto himself drew attention in this series for misplaying a ball into a Little League home run on the turf at Rogers Centre. He's hitting .301 with 17 home runs on the season, so the production is there — but on a 36-50 team with the second-highest payroll in baseball, someone has to explain what happened. Peralta's name has already surfaced in trade deadline chatter, which either means the front office is being smart about an underperforming asset or the white flag is already visible on the horizon. Either way, Canada Day or not, this game counts.