Blue Jays push Wild Card; Steelers rookie shines

Toronto and Pittsburgh were tied together in a social-media betting post on Wednesday, but the underlying facts came from two separate races. The Toronto Blue Jays entered September still alive in the American League Wild Card chase, though outside the current three-team field. Drew Allar, the Steelers’ rookie quarterback, had already supplied the football half of the post with a strong preseason debut in Mike McCarthy’s first game as Pittsburgh head coach. (espn.com) The tweet itself did not list Toronto’s exact standings position or the final score from Pittsburgh’s win over Green Bay. (mlb.com) ### How close are the Blue Jays to a playoff spot right now? MLB’s official standings showed on Wednesday that Toronto was 68-71 and 2.5 games behind the final American League Wild Card berth. Cleveland held that last spot at 70-68, while Texas and Baltimore were both 1.5 games back and ahead of Toronto in the chase. The Blue Jays were also coming off a loss and had gone 5-5 in their last 10 games, according to MLB.com’s Wild Card page. Their next listed game was September 2 at Cleveland, a direct matchup with the club sitting on the cut line. (mlb.com) ### Why does the Cleveland series matter for Toronto? Cleveland entered Wednesday with a 70-68 record and a two-game winning streak, which meant Toronto was facing the team it needed to catch rather than a distant contender. A head-to-head series in early September can move both the standings and the games-back column at the same time. (mlb.com) Toronto’s position also reflected how crowded the race had become. Texas and Baltimore each started the day at 69-70, leaving the Blue Jays behind three clubs for the final Wild Card place. (mlb.com) ### What exactly did Allar do against the Packers? Drew Allar went 10 of 13 for 154 yards, threw touchdown passes to Kaden Wetjen and Riley Nowkowski, and ran for a 3-yard score in Pittsburgh’s 28-9 preseason win over Green Bay on August 13, according to ESPN’s game recap. The performance came in Allar’s first NFL action after the Steelers selected the Penn State quarterback in the third round. (mlb.com) The 22-year-old entered to chants of “Drewwww,” ESPN reported, and helped turn McCarthy’s debut leading Pittsburgh into a win at Acrisure Stadium. (mlb.com) NFL.com said Allar and fellow young quarterback Will Howard strengthened the case for the Steelers to keep four quarterbacks on their initial 53-man roster. ### What did Mike McCarthy say after the game? Mike McCarthy told reporters after the game that his young quarterbacks were “very poised,” according to ESPN and NFL.com. (espn.com) He added that Allar “played very, very well,” while also praising Howard’s response and two-minute work. NFL.com reported that Allar’s first pass went 74 yards on a catch-and-run by rookie Kaden Wetjen. The outlet also noted that Allar was the No. 76 overall pick and that the preseason showing added to the Steelers’ roster decision at quarterback. (espn.com) ### What was missing from the original social post? The X post cited in the briefing said Toronto remained in the Wild Card hunt and said Allar starred as McCarthy’s team beat the Packers, but it did not include Toronto’s exact games-back number or the final score and date of Pittsburgh’s game. (espn.com) Those details place the two claims on firmer footing: Toronto was 2.5 games out on September 2, and Allar’s breakout came in a 28-9 preseason win on August 13. September 2 was the next checkpoint for both threads. (nfl.com) Toronto’s next scheduled game was at Cleveland, according to MLB.com, while Allar’s preseason debut remained the most concrete performance cited in the Steelers portion of the post. (mlb.com)