TORONTO – Toronto Blue Jays players are probably better off avoiding any deep dives into baseball history for the time being.

Now trailing Cleveland 3-0, the Blue Jays must win four in a row to stave off elimination and keep their World Series hopes alive. If they look too closely at history, they’ll see that just one team has rallied from the deficit they currently face.

Of the 35 teams that have trailed 3-0 in a best-of-seven series only one avoided defeat; the 2004 Red Sox, who beat the Yankees on the way to a World Series title.

“We’ve won four in a row plenty of times,” reliever Jason Grilli said. “We’ve got to win one tomorrow before we win any of the other ones”

If the Blue Jays are going to win four in a row, they’ll need a lot to go right…

OFFENCE NEEDED
The Blue Jays have scored zero, one and two runs in the first three games of the ALCS. They need far more from their hitters to have any kind of a shot.

“I still believe our offence is due to erupt,” manager John Gibbons said. “It hasn’t happened yet. But I’ve seen it too many times.”

Gibbons moved Jose Bautista back to the top of the order Monday, and the right fielder responded with a single and a walk. Beyond that, the Blue Jays couldn’t generate offence aside from Michael Saunders’ home run and Ezequiel Carrera’s triple.

“It’s a pretty good group,” Gibbons said. “And they’re due.”

The Blue Jays hit 10 playoff homers before the ALCS but just one since. At this point their season depends on some sort of offensive resurgence.

“We don’t have any choice,” catcher Russell Martin said. “It’s either you win or you go home. and I don’t want to go home. And I don’t think anybody in this clubhouse wants to go home.”

KEEP RUNNING GAME IN CHECK
For a while it looked as though the Blue Jays had no answer for Cleveland’s running game. Not only were accomplished base stealers like Rajai Davis and Coco Crisp running, slugging first baseman Mike Napoli was joining in, too.

Napoli advanced on a wild pitch in the sixth inning of Monday’s game to set up an add-on run for Cleveland that ended up being the game-winner. Later on Martin would throw out Francisco Lindor on a steal attempt for his first caught stealing of the series, a reassuring development for the Blue Jays considering how well Cleveland runs.

“Our style, we have to be aggressive on the bases,” manager Terry Francona said. “We can’t just throw the bats and balls out there or we’d win very few games.”

Just a few days ago Martin said he hoped Cleveland’s baserunners would challenge his throwing arm after a season in which he prevented 11 of 72 steal attempts. So far, Cleveland’s one-for-three in the ALCS with three extra bases on wild pitches.

AVAILABLE IN THE BULLPEN
The Blue Jays will have to treat Tuesday’s contest with the urgency of a must-win game. That means relievers will have to be available in the early innings just in case starter Aaron Sanchez gets in trouble. Not that Sanchez will take the mound thinking about the support available in the Blue Jays’ bullpen. His approach?

“Get as many outs as you can before you have to turn it over,” Sanchez said. “It’s been our mentality all year, and we have to continue to do that until there’s no more games left.”

While Francona deserves credit for using his bullpen early and often, Toronto’s starters have pitched so well that Gibbons hasn’t had to resort to much bullpen juggling. If that changes Tuesday, he’ll have to be ready to adjust.

BEAT SOMEONE ELSE
Andrew Miller might be the best reliever in baseball right now. He doesn’t have Aroldis Chapman’s 102 mph fastball or even Kenley Jansen’s 98 mph cutter, but Cleveland’s left-hander continues to dominate the Blue Jays with a fastball-slider combination that seems unhittable.

Of the 17 Blue Jays batters Miller has faced during the playoffs, he has struck out 13. He hasn’t walked a batter either, which is pretty impressive considering that command issues forced him to the bullpen earlier in his career.

(If anything, Miller’s four-year, $36-million contract looks like a bargain. Chapman or Jansen could double that guarantee when they hit free agency this winter.)

At this point the Blue Jays don’t seem likely to solve Miller, so they’re going to have to score against Cleveland’s other pitchers. On Tuesday that challenge begins with 2014 Cy Young winner Corey Kluber. If the Blue Jays are going to make this interesting, they’re going to have to earn it.

“We’ve got our work cut out for us,” Gibbons said. “That’s an understatement.”