The wins are great, but the injury curbs some of the enthusiasm. 

The Toronto Blue Jays went into the Bronx knowing a series win could give them a significant cushion in the American League East. On Saturday night, they secured that victory, taking the first three games of a four-game weekend against the New York Yankees to pump their division lead to 4.5 games. 

That is a commanding lead considering only 20 games remain in the Blue Jays’ regular season, while the Yankees have 21 to play without controlling their own fate within the division. The three Toronto wins, including Saturday’s sweep of a doubleheader, give it a 93 percent probability of winning the East, according to FanGraphs’ playoff odds.

Right now, the only thing dampening the impending triumph is shortstop Troy Tulowitzki’s left shoulder blade, which cracked upon impact with center fielder Kevin Pillar during the first of Saturday’s two games.

Tulowitzki, who went to Toronto in the blockbuster trade that sent Jose Reyes to the Colorado Rockies before the non-waiver trade deadline, will be monitored in the coming days before the Blue Jays’ medical staff determines his timeline for a return.

This certainly could be a significant blow, and Tulowitzki could be out for a while. Considering the role the shoulders play in a baseball swing, and considering a crack is the same as a break or a fracture, it seems like a long shot at this point that the Blue Jays will get their starting shortstop back at any point for the rest of the regular or postseason.

For now, the team has to wait and see. MLB reporter Gregor Chisholm and former NFL team doctor David J. Chao weighed in:

While the initial news is bad, this is not a deathblow by any stretch. The Blue Jays are the hitting-est team in Major League Baseball, and their lineup is the most intimidating the sport has to offer at this point. Even without Tulowitzki.

That is because he has mostly been intimidating in name only since joining the Blue Jays. Tulowitzki had a stellar debut with his new club, going 3-for-5 with a pair of doubles and a home run. Since then and going into Saturday, he had hit .221/.308/.329 with a below-average 90 OPS+ in 37 games, showing that the team’s 30-9 record since acquiring him—before Saturday’s sweep—was due to the team’s improved pitching and the boppers that come before him in a stacked lineup.

Despite Tulowitzki’s lack of offensive production, the Blue Jays had a .282/.354/.485 team slash line with an .839 OPS while averaging more than six runs a game in their previous 39 games entering Saturday. Then, they scored 19 runs in the doubleheader against the Yankees.

That is truly incredible offensive production, but the Blue Jays have become much more than a video game lineup over the last month-and-a-half.

The offense had been great all season, but the team lacked adequate starting pitching. That is why it traded for ace David Price along with bullpen help before the July 31 deadline. Since then, the staff had put up a 3.37 ERA in the 36 games before Saturday, when it allowed a total of 12 runs in the two games.

And they’ve also done well in meaningful games on the road with the division on the line. The Canadian Press’ Melissa Couto relayed this stat:

When your offense is capable of double-digit outputs on any night against any pitcher the opposing team has to offer—according to Chisholm, the Blue Jays have scored 10 or more runs 24 times this season, the most since the 2011 Boston Red Sox—that is plenty of production from the mound.

“That’s what our offense does, they score runs and today was a perfect example of that,” Blue Jays starter Marco Estrada told reporters Saturday. “We put it all together.”

That is why Tulowitzki’s injury will not derail the Blue Jays. A lineup that features MVP candidate Josh Donaldson (38 home runs), Jose Bautista (35 home runs) and Edwin Encarnacion (32 home runs) can absorb an injury to a so-so offensive cog and keep right on rolling. Plus, Ryan Goins, assuming he replaces Tulowitzki at shortstop, had a .420 OBP in his last 69 plate appearances before Saturday.

The Blue Jays might have started rolling right around the time they acquired Tulowitzki, but he clearly has not been the sole reason, nor one of the top ones, for the Blue Jays being on the verge of winning their first AL East title since 1993, the last time they qualified for the playoffs.

They are better with Tulowitzki, but even without him they look like one of the most complete teams in the league and are a legitimate contender to win the pennant.

 

All quotes, unless otherwise specified, have been acquired firsthand by Anthony Witrado. Follow Anthony on Twitter @awitrado and talk baseball here.

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