Since June 1997, when interleague play was introduced, the Blue Jays have played 270 interleague games. The team's record over those 270 games is not pretty. In fact, one could say that the team's record has fallen out of the proverbial ugly tree. The Jays have lost 145 games and won only 125 games. That is far from.500 ball and leads one to question: If the Jays were better in interleague play, would the team have made the playoffs in prior seasons?
This year, more so than in recent memory, that question may prove to haunt the Blue Jays if the interleague woes continue. With 18 interleague games scheduled for AL teams (the Jays have already played 5 games with a 2-3 record thus far) and an abnormally tight AL East, going less than .500 in interleague play this year could have a true detrimental impact. All of this is hypothetical at this point and the Blue Jays could tear through the rest of interleague play, but history says that is unlikely. [Though, if history is always looked to as a predictor for the future, that would ignore progress in a vast array of societal areas - for example, if historical trends, as a predictor, were correct in the last U.S. Presidential election, Obama would not be in office - and we all know that the U.S. people bucked that historical trend.]
I don't proclaim to have an answer here and I'm really not saying anything new. Jays fans have been fretting over our interleague woes for nearly 15 years. I suppose I should remain proud that when interleague play truely counted for the Jays, we came out on top, twice. But in today's day and age, interleague play is not limited to the World Series or the All-Star game. It is a key component of the schedule, making up more than 10% of the season, and the Jays have to figure something out and quickly.
I'll be at the Rogers Centre for at least one interleague game this week, maybe two, and hopefully I can witness the Jays starting to buck the historical trend. Here's hoping anyways.
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