Toronto Blue Jays center fielder Daulton Varsho (5) gets doused with ice water by first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (27) after a win over the Boston Red Sox at Rogers Centre. John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images

Blue Jays Magic Number Finally Drops Entering Final Series of Season

Originally posted on Toronto Blue Jays on SI
By Matt Postins | Last updated Sep 26, 2025 11:00 AM ET

The Toronto Blue Jays finally claimed a victory over the Boston Red Sox, as they won 6-1 on Thursday by deploying a bullpen game and finally getting their offense back on track.

The Blue Jays (91-68) got home runs from Daulton Varsho and George Springer, as Varsho drove four runs on his grand slam and Springer drove in two runs with his long ball. Toronto opted to start Louis Varland, a reliever, as an opener and then deployed six pitchers behind him. They limited the Red Sox to one run and four hits.

By winning, the Blue Jays remained in a tie for the lead in the AL East, as the New York Yankees beat the Chicago White Sox for a series sweep. But the Blue Jays’ magic number to win the division moved.

Toronto Blue Jays Magic Number

Fair Ball pic.twitter.com/7H3n2pUfbV
— Toronto Blue Jays (@BlueJays) September 26, 2025

Toronto's magic number to win the AL East moves every time the Blue Jays win a game or the Yankees lose a game. That number had been stuck at four since the beginning of the week. The Blue Jays lost the first two games of their series with the Red Sox while the Yankees won the first two games of their series with the White Sox.

Even though New York defeated Chicago on Thursday, Toronto reduced its magic number to win the division to three with their victory over the Red Sox. Toronto's magic number includes the fact that it holds the tiebreaker over the Yankees due to a better record in head-to-head games.

Because of the tiebreaker, the Yankees must finish with a better record than the Blue Jays to win the division. The division title is an important distinction in the AL playoffs. The division winner is likely to hold the No. 1 seed in the playoffs, which comes with a bye through the wild card round and home-field advantage in the AL playoffs. The second-place team will likely claim the No. 4 seed and play in the wild card round.

The Blue Jays are seeking to win their first division title since 2015. Since that division title they've been to the postseason four other times, but always as a wild card team. The Blue Jays reached the ALCS again in 2016 but fell to Cleveland.