MLB Baseball

2025-09-24 - Boston Red Sox at Toronto Blue Jays

A Sports Betting Pick by FirstDown

Boston Red Sox @ Toronto Blue Jays
United States : MLB Baseball
Wednesday 24th August 2025 - Scheduled 7:07pm
12:07am (British Time)

Preview

If you had told someone at the start of September that there will be drama in two of the American League Divisions, people would have pointed to the AL West and AL East as being the likely providers. Instead the Detroit Tigers have collapsed in the AL Central and the Seattle Mariners are on the brink of winning the West Division.

The American League East has not failed to disappoint.

Last week it looked like the Toronto Blue Jays (90-67) had done enough to not only fend off the New York Yankees within the Division, but also being well on course to finish with the Number 1 Seed. Five losses in six games means both situations have changed dramatically and there is only 1 game between the Blue Jays and the chasing Yankees within the Division, while the aforementioned Mariners are fast closing on the Number 1 Seed.

The Blue Jays were beaten in the opener of this three game set against another American League East rival that is pushing towards the post-season. The Boston Red Sox (86-71) are unlikely to pass two teams to win the Division, but they are now 2 games clear of the Houston Astros in the Wild Card Race and have won four of the last six games played.

Boston will give the ball to Garrett Crochet who have been a strong part of the starting rotation in his first season in Beantown. The pitcher has put together a 17-5 record with a 2.69 ERA in thirty-one starts this season, while also having Playoff experience which could be invaluable if the Red Sox secure a spot in the Wild Card Series next week.

In four September starts, Garrett Crochet is operating with a 4.68 ERA, but the support from the batting lineup means he has earned the decision win in three starts in a row. A positive for the Red Sox is that Crochet continues to chew through the Innings, while his personal performances against the Blue Jays will offer plenty more encouragement.

Garrett Crochet has thrown over 12 Innings in two starts against Toronto this season and allowed three earned runs. However, errors allowed the Blue Jays to rack up enough runs in the first start to hand Crochet the decision loss, while he was awarded the win in the other.

The Blue Jays are going to counter with veteran Max Scherzer who suffered the latest battering on the mound in his most recent start. Max Scherzer does have a 5-4 record in sixteen starts for Toronto this season, but the ERA has now moved out to 5.06 and recent offerings have not been good enough.

In four of the last five starts, Max Scherzer has allowed at least four runs and he was not even able to get out of the First Inning against the Kansas City Royals when giving up seven runs. Unsurprisingly he was handed the decision loss in that game and Scherzer is now 0-2 with a 10.93 ERA in his last four starts.

He has not pitched against the Boston Red Sox this season and Max Scherzer was knocked around for five runs in 6 Innings thrown when last opposing them in 2023.

Toronto have won seven of the eleven games played between the teams this season, although it is the Red Sox who have won two of the last three.

Prediction

The Detroit Tigers are the poster boys of the 2025 late season collapse, but the Toronto Blue Jays will be concerned with recent form that has allowed the New York Yankees to breath right down their necks.

If things go wrong on Wednesday, the Blue Jays and Yankees could be level in the standings and recent starts from veteran Max Scherzer are far from encouraging.

The Blue Jays are hosting a Boston Red Sox team still pushing for a spot in the post-season too and Garrett Crochet has been pitching well enough. The younger man on the mound, Crochet will believe there is still more to come from himself and he has played the Blue Jays batting lineup pretty well this season.

It may just give the road team the edge to secure the series win before the final game on Thursday and also just keep the likes of the Houston Astros at arm's length in the Wild Card Race.