Dylan Cease said he will “die on the battlefield” for the Toronto Blue Jays as he takes the ball Friday night against the Texas Rangers with Toronto’s playoff hopes in question.
The Blue Jays enter the three-game series at Globe Life Field at 76-77, a game and a half behind the Chicago White Sox for the final American League wild-card spot, according to TSN. Texas is 76-76 and one game back.
Nine games remain for Toronto.
The Cleveland Guardians now lead the AL Central. That matters for Toronto because the Blue Jays hold the tiebreaker over Cleveland but not over Chicago.
Toronto moved Cease up a day to pitch the opener. He was originally lined up for Saturday, MLB.com’s Keegan Matheson reported Wednesday.
Cease told Casino.org that he accepts the responsibility that comes with starts like this one but does not let it turn into pressure.
“I definitely feel the responsibility, but I wouldn’t say I feel any pressure,” Cease said. “I just want to get the job done and I’m always going to put the effort into it to achieve this. I’m going to die on the battlefield for my team. In these games I guess there’s more pressure, but it’s not a living experience for me when I’m pitching.”
“I’m just out there focused, giving it everything I have,” Cease continued. “And when things are going good for me, it’s really good. But in short, I don’t really put that extra pressure on me, but I do accept the responsibility and I know what the stakes are.”
Cease has backed that up in his first season in Toronto. He is 11-5 with a 2.38 ERA and 236 strikeouts over 166 1/3 innings across 28 starts.
His WHIP sits at 1.06. Opponents are hitting .178 against him.
He made his first All-Star team this summer. On Sunday against the Baltimore Orioles, he allowed one run on four hits over five innings.
Texas has given him trouble. In his only start against the Rangers this season, on June 27, Cease allowed four runs and walked five over 4 2/3 innings in a loss. He owns a 7.71 ERA across four career starts in Texas.
Toronto signed Cease to a seven-year, $210 million contract last winter. The deal came after an 8-12 season with a 4.55 ERA for the San Diego Padres in 2025.
The Blue Jays were coming off an AL pennant. They lost the 2025 World Series to the Los Angeles Dodgers in seven games.
Cease will face right-hander Kumar Rocker, who is 5-11 with a 4.54 ERA. Rocker threw six shutout innings against Toronto on June 28.
José Soriano starts Saturday for the Blue Jays against Cal Quantrill. Quantrill said earlier this month that the Rangers cannot leave anything in the tank in September, Dallas Sports Journal reported.
Should Toronto drop the series, the Blue Jays would head to Baltimore with six games left and ground to make up on two teams.
First pitch Friday is set for 8:05 p.m. ET.
