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The Toronto Blue Jays will be going to a closer-by-committee if the situation arises Saturday afternoon against the visiting Cleveland Guardians. Jeff Hoffman has struggled as the closer this season and he was told Friday by manager John Schneider that the team will mix-and-match for now instead of putting the onus on one particular pitcher in the ninth inning. “It’s still finding spots for guys, so whoever that may be in the ninth inning, for now, it’ll be that guy,” Schneider said. The Blue Jays did not need a closer in their 8-6 loss to Cleveland on Friday in the opener of the three-game series. Toronto fell behind 5-0 and never had a lead. Hoffman understood the move, saying there

Jesus Ferreira is in his second season with the Seattle Sounders, but he always enjoys playing his old club, FC Dallas. “There’s still, like, butterflies,” Ferreira said ahead of the teams’ Saturday night match in Seattle. “Going against your childhood club, the club that you grew up your whole life in … so, it’s exciting. I’m looking forward to it.” Ferreira, who is tied for fifth in MLS with five assists, and the Sounders (5-1-1, 16 points) will take a five-match unbeaten streak (4-0-1) into the Western Conference showdown with Dallas (3-2-4, 13 points), which is winless in its past three matches (0-1-2). Dallas is led by Petar Musa, who leads the league’s Golden Boot race with nine goals. Santiago

The Vancouver Whitecaps play their last home match until August on Saturday night when they host the Colorado Rapids. The Whitecaps (7-1-0, 21 points), who are second in the Western Conference and the league overall behind only San Jose (24 points), will play their next eight matches in a row on the road as their home pitch, BC Place, undergoes preparations to host seven FIFA World Cup matches. Vancouver’s next home MLS match won’t be until Aug. 1 against Los Angeles FC. The Whitecaps have made the most of their unbalanced schedule, which has seen them play seven of their first eight matches at home. Vancouver has gone 6-1-0 at home, losing only 1-0 to San Jose back on March

Two months into the regular season, Nashville SC built the best record in the Eastern Conference while juggling matches in the CONCACAF Champions Cup. Now, Nashville will have had a rare full week’s rest when it hosts Charlotte FC on Saturday. Nashville SC (6-1-1, 19 points) had Wednesday off while much of the league was in action. They also didn’t have a midweek Champions Cup fixture for a change: Nashville beat Club America on aggregate last week and will tussle with Mexican power Tigres UANL in the semifinals beginning April 28. “I think when you actually get a full week of training, you can really focus on yourself for periods of time,” Nashville head coach B.J. Callaghan said. “Obviously when