Crew midfielder Andres Herrera looked to generate the first offense attempt for Columbus with a shot inside Toronto's box but had that attempt blocked by a Toronto defender. After the block, the ball rolled into the arms of goalkeeper Sean Johnson, shutting down the play. The attempt was recorded as a save for Johnson.

The defending champions were thrashed by the Seattle Sounders on Saturday, suffering their biggest regular season defeat in six years.

Officially, the Crew have faced Toronto once this season. On July 6, Columbus picked up a 4-0 victory over Toronto during the course of a five-game winning streak. What is left out of the Crew's official record books is a match before the start of the season this year.

With Cincinnati sitting in second in the conference, recording 51 points, and Columbus on its tail in third with 49 points, the upcoming Hell is Real match carries heavy weight for this year's MLS Cup playoffs.

Second-half goals by Cucho Hernandez and Andrés Herrera lifted defending champion Columbus to a 2-0 win over Toronto FC in MLS play Wednesday. Toronto had more of the attack in a scoreless first half but it took Hernandez just six minutes to show his quality after coming on to start the second half.

Columbus has already faced Toronto this season, on July 6. At Lower.com Field, the Crew defeated Toronto 4-0 with all goals coming from different players, including team-leading scorers Cucho Hernandez and Diego Rossi. Here's how to watch the Crew's second matchup of the season against Toronto: Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. at BMO Field in Toronto.

Canadian Jacen Russell-Rowe set up the goal, staving off defender Richie Laryea to feed the 25-year-old Colombian star. Hernandez paused, took a look to see where goalkeeper Sean Johnson was and curled a shot past the diving ’keeper from the edge of the penalty box for his 14th goal of the season.