Minnesota may not be competing for postseason spots down the stretch, but they are giving the Blue Jays plenty of issues with a couple of teams chasing them in the American League East.
A ninth-inning collapse led to a 7-5 victory for the Twins last night, but the Blue Jays have a chance tonight to get back in the column, win a series, and take a positive into a massive series against the Brewers this weekend.
The Blue Jays will turn to lefty Eric Lauer on the mound tonight, who hasn’t pitched since August 16th against the Rangers. With Shane Bieber making his first start as a Blue Jay last week, Lauer had a start skipped, although he was available out of the bullpen if that situation presented itself.
Getting Lauer back on the mound has been good news for the Blue Jays this season. He’s appeared in 20 games total this season as a bulk reliever and starter, posting a 2.76 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, and 8.9 K/9 over 88 innings. The most earned runs Lauer has allowed in a start this season have been three, and he’s only done that twice. Outside of that, it’s been 0s, 1s, and 2s for the 30-year-old southpaw.
Let’s take the rubber match 💪 #lightsupletsgo pic.twitter.com/EJyCD5ewi6
— Toronto Blue Jays (@BlueJays) August 27, 2025
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Lauer pitched against the Twins on June 6th at Target Field, pitching 2 1/3 innings of relief following a Paxton Shultz start. He allowed just one hit and one walk with two strikeouts, with neither base runner getting past first base. That outing is the last time Lauer pitched out of the bullpen for the Blue Jays, and he’s made 12 starts since.
With Byron Buxton owning a .964 OPS against lefties and Matt Wallner holding a similar slash line against either handedness this season, Lauer will have his work cut out for him when it comes to Minnesota’s top two home run hitters. There isn’t a lot of one-on-one experience in Minnesota’s lineup against Lauer, though, with Buxton being the only hitter to have more than two at-bats against him.
The Blue Jays will be facing Twins righty Simeon Woods Richardson, a former Blue Jays prospect. Woods Richardson has made 17 total appearances (16 starts) this season, pitching to a 4.24 ERA, 1.40 WHIP, and 7.7 K/9 over 80 2/3 innings. He’s over two months removed from some of his worst starts of the season, and he’s been running a 2.58 ERA since June 15th.
Woods Richardson hasn’t generated much chase this year, and he’s also had one of the highest walk rates of his career. His starts seem to hover around four to five innings as he’s only pitched into the sixth inning five times this season, and he’s completed six full innings only once.
Woods Richardson faced the Blue Jays in May of last season, allowing five earned runs over 4 1/3 innings of work. He allowed home runs to Bo Bichette and Davis Schneider, as well as three singles from Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
Speaking of Guerrero, he’ll be playing at first base tonight for the first time since he returned from his hamstring injury. That will get George Springer out of the outfield and back into the DH role, which is well deserved after a pair of home runs last night.
After getting five hits in nine at-bats in this series, Nathan Lukes works his way back into the lineup, but John Schneider has opted to plug Addison Barger into the two spot for tonight’s game. Barger will play third with Ernie Clement out of the lineup.
Location: Rogers Centre – Toronto, Ontario
First Pitch: 7:07 PM EST
Watch/Listen: Sportsnet / Sportsnet 590 The Fan
Starting Pitchers
Toronto Blue Jays – Eric Lauer: 8-2 record, 2.76 ERA, 88 IP, 87 SO, 25 BB
Minnesota Twins – Simeon Woods Richardson: 5-4 record, 4.24 ERA, 80 2/3 IP, 69 SO, 35 BB
Lineups:
Blue Jays:
- George Springer – DH
- Addison Barger – 3B
- Vladimir Guerrero Jr. – 1B
- Bo Bichette – SS
- Daulton Varsho – CF
- Davis Schneider – LF
- Nathan Lukes – RF
- Tyler Heineman – C
- Andrés Giménez – 2B
Twins:
- Byron Buxton – CF
- Ryan Jeffers – C
- Matt Wallner – RF
- Luke Keaschall – 2B
- Brooks Lee – SS
- Kody Clemens – 1B
- Royce Lewis – 3B
- Austin Martin – LF
- Edouard Julien – DH