The Toronto Blue Jays and Tampa Bay Rays face off in a crucial AL East matchup on Wednesday night. The Blue Jays enter on a three-game win streak, having won 11 of their last 13 games to secure second place in the division and establish a four-game lead in the AL Wild Card race.

Yusei Kikuchi (4-5, 4.89 ERA) takes the mound for Toronto. In his last start against Detroit, he allowed just one run over five innings in his second appearance since returning from a three-week absence in July.

The struggling Rays will counter with reliever Jalen Beeks opening what will be a bullpen game. Beeks has been effective recently, allowing only one run in 8.2 innings during July after a rough June where he gave up seven runs in 12.1 innings.

Key Factors:

• Toronto needs to capitalize early against Tampa Bay's bullpen, requiring patience against multiple pitchers
• The Rays must provide run support, having struggled to score lately
• Tampa Bay sits one game behind Seattle for the second Wild Card spot
• The Rays have lost 4 of their last 5 games

The game sets up as a crucial contest in the AL Wild Card race, with Toronto looking to extend their advantage while Tampa Bay aims to snap out of their recent slide.

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