Baseball is heating up for Canada's teams (big-league and Little)

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The dog days of August mean the stakes are getting higher for Canada's baseball teams, both big-league and Little. Here's what's up:

The Blue Jays are running out of time to flip the switch.

The mid-July firing of manager Charlie Montoyo seemed to electrify the meandering World Series contenders. But the energy was fleeting: since winning 12 of their first 15 games under John Schneider, Toronto has gone 3-9 to fall to a disappointing 61-54 on the year.

With fewer than 50 games left, the Blue Jays can probably forget about catching the juggernaut Yankees, who are 10 games ahead atop the American League East. The Jays still hold the third and final AL wild card for the newly expanded post-season, but just barely. If they get swept this afternoon by Baltimore, they'll drop a half game behind the Orioles for that last wild-card spot. That's a humbling scenario when you consider that the low-budget Orioles' total payroll ($43 million US) is quite a bit less than what the Jays are paying for just two players (George Springer and Kevin Gausman).

So, what's the problem? Let's start with starting pitching. Cy Young winner Robbie Ray left for Seattle and former ace Hyun Jin Ryu is out for the year with an elbow injury, but two other starters have stepped up. Newcomer Gausman is earning his five-year, $110M contract with sparkling underlying stats that belie his unlucky 8-9 record, while second-year man Alek Manoah (12-6) has also pitched brilliantly. But the back end of the rotation is a disaster, with Jose Berrios and Yusei Kikuchi performing at well below replacement level. Berrios,