| Here’s a thought that made me chuckle: The World Series drought in Canada might end before the Stanley Cup drought does. That’s what the Toronto Blue Jays have me thinking after they beat the Yankees in the American League Division Series with a 5-2 win in Game 4 on Wednesday. The Blue Jays have quickly ascended to my favorite team to watch in the MLB playoffs, which is saying something considering how chock-full of entertaining ballclubs this postseason is. It’s hard to resist the palpable chemistry billowing from the Blue Jays’ clubhouse — plus, they’ve got swaggering first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and his cool bat flips. Seriously. Watch this clip of Big Papi (a.k.a. David Ortiz), overcome with giddiness, seated between a totally-over-it Alex Rodriguez and Derek Jeter, recite the old “Da Yankees Lose” bit, and try not to smile! It really is that simple. Toronto was so dominant this week and so appealing that I’m surprised how little I knew about them before this week. Even as a casual baseball fan, I’m aware of the sport’s best teams and top storylines. Even though Toronto tied the Yankees for the best record in the AL, the Blue Jays don’t get a ton of coverage in the United States. Fox aired exactly none of their games during the 2025 regular season. For comparison, the Athletic pointed out this week, the Yankees, Mariners and Tigers all had eight appearances on a national broadcast between Fox and FS1. My colleague Chelsea Janes called Toronto a sleeping giant for a different reason — namely, they entered the division series with a seven-game postseason losing streak. Their previous playoff win came in Game 4 of the 2016 American League Championship Series, which they lost in five games. They were swept out of the first round in 2020, 2022 and 2023. They missed the playoffs completely last year. One big difference between that group and the team that thumped the Yankees 10-1 and 13-7 in the first two games of the ALDS this week is investment. Toronto signed Guerrero to a 14-year, $500 million extension in April with no deferred money, at the time the second-largest deal in major league history. It was the type of money-where-your-mouth-is move that another star of another Canadian team is hoping for. Over in the NHL, which opened its season Tuesday, the best hockey player in the world is so desperate to win a Stanley Cup he agreed to a pay cut. | 
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