AL Wild Card 2022: Mariners vs. Blue Jays Hot Takes from MLB Twitter

The American League Wild Card Series between the Seattle Mariners and Toronto Blue Jays will showcase some of baseball's top young talent.

The first at-bat of the series Friday will likely feature Blue Jays starter Alek Manoah going up against Julio Rodríguez, the heavy favorite to win the AL Rookie of the Year Award.

Manoah went 16-7 with a 2.24 ERA and 180 strikeouts in 196.2 innings this season, and as Canadian television broadcaster Sid Seixeiro outlined, he has been great for the Blue Jays since entering the majors last May.

Rodríguez finished his regular season by going 1-for-2 with a leadoff home run against the Detroit Tigers on Wednesday.

Rodríguez has some of the best credentials of any rookie in history, as MLB.com's Daniel Kramer noted.

The first at-bat of the series should just be a starter for what has the potential to be the most electric of the four wild-card matchups.

Mitch Haniger could be one of the toughest outs for the Toronto pitching staff. He hit home runs in consecutive games to end the regular season and he is playing for a new contract.

Haniger played only 57 games this season, and ESPN's Jeff Passan speculated on his situation on 710 AM in Seattle.

"Six weeks ago, I would have told you he's getting the qualifying offer. Now I wonder," Passan said last week. "Now I wonder if things have changed. … I wish Mitch Haniger had stayed healthy all season because he's a guy who you want around, and you don't want to have to convince yourself that you should keep him around. If the qualifying offer is not there, then I do wonder if Mitch Haniger winds up playing somewhere else next year.”

Seattle is embarking on its first postseason journey since 2001. Toronto is back in the playoffs for the second time in three years.

Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette said he has not been part of a postseason because the 2020 Wild Card Series was played without fans.

Bichette is one of a few young stars that will be on display for the Blue Jays. The most notable is Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who has produced massive numbers in just over 500 games in the majors.

MLB.com's Keegan Matheson pronounced that the Blue Jays have more offensive power than the Mariners in a radio segment with TSN 1050.

"The Blue Jays have the offensive advantage here. They lead baseball in batting average; they're second in OPS, only to the Dodgers. ... The Mariners are more middle-of-the-pack offensively," Matheson said.

The fans in Toronto should provide a raucous environment for all three games, if the series gets that far, but the loudest noise could come in Game 2, when former Blue Jays pitcher Robbie Ray takes the mound for the Mariners.

Ray played for the Blue Jays for part of the 2020 season and in 2021 before he signed with the Mariners. The left-handed pitcher conceded four or more earned runs in three of his last five starts. Gausman allowed five or more earned runs in two of his last five outings. He was the pitcher the Blue Jays signed 11 days after Ray joined the M's.

The winner of the three-game series in Ontario will play the top-seeded Houston Astros in the American League Division Series.