'This team is built for the playoffs': Blue Jays confident entering wild-card opener

Things looked bleak for the Toronto Blue Jays a few weeks ago when they were swept in emphatic fashion by the visiting Texas Rangers.

The four-game losing skid dropped Toronto below the wild-card cutline.

That's when Blue Jays outfielder George Springer, a playoff veteran and a World Series champion in 2017, showed his leadership skills in the clubhouse.

"George came around to every single guy that was in here, telling them not to give up, to keep going," said Blue Jays reliever Jordan Romano. "That meant a lot coming from him.

"I think the guys we've got, the character of them, that definitely helped us keep the course."

The Blue Jays responded with victories in seven of their next nine games. Toronto went on to book its playoff ticket on Saturday night and will play the Twins in Minnesota in a best-of-three wild-card series starting Tuesday at 4:38 p.m. ET.

"I'll keep it in house, but I just let the guys know to keep going," Springer said. "I mean that's baseball, stuff like that's going to happen. We answered the bell and here we are."

Securing a playoff berth before Sunday's season finale, a 12-8 loss to Tampa Bay in a playoff warm-up game, allowed the Blue Jays to save Kevin Gausman for the Twins.

He's a good bet to get a starting assignment along with Chris Bassitt and former Twins starter Jose Berrios. The Blue Jays will likely unveil their playoff roster Tuesday morning.

"The confidence is so high in the clubhouse amongst the guys and the staff," said Blue Jays manager John Schneider. "It felt like we just needed to get in. Getting there was hard.

"So, going forward, this team is built for the playoffs between pitching, defence and offence."

Minnesota (87-75) and Toronto (89-73) split their six regular-season