Photo by Bryan M. Bennett/Getty Images
Guess who just got back today? Them wild-eye Toronto Blue Jays that had been away.
After a four-game split with the Tampa Bay Rays (19-11) in Florida, the Blue Jays (14-13) are back in town and set to take on their American League East rival the Boston Red Sox (9-20) in the first series of a seven-game home stand at Sahlen Field.
The Blue Jays sit 3.5 games out of first place in the AL East and currently hold the last AL Wild Card spot. They have won nine of their last 11 games that includes back-to-back series sweeps of the Orioles and Phillies.
For the Boston Red Sox, this team has seen better days. After being swept in back-to-back series against the Rays and New York Yankees, the Red Sox managed to go 3-3 in their last six games and spilt a four-game set in Baltimore over the weekend.
This is a perfect matchup for a powerful Blue Jays team that continues to find ways to win baseball games. Currently, the Blue Jays rank second in the AL in home runs (47) and fourth in the AL in slugging percentage (.445).
They will face off against a Boston pitching staff that ranks second-to-last in the MLB with a 5.89 ERA. They have also given up the second most home runs in the league (48).
If all goes well for the Blue Jays, we might see this powerful lineup become an offensive juggernaut.
The last time they met:
The last time the Blue Jays and Red Sox met at Fenway Park in the beginning of August. The Red Sox won the series 2-1 and stole the rubber match 5-3 on a walk-off shot by Mitch Moreland over the Green Monster off of Matt Shoemaker.
He said What?:
“It’s all about putting it together. We’ve been slowly putting it together from the beginning of the season. Our bullpen has been as good as it can be all year long. We started off slow with the bats and now we’re able to put some consistent at-bats together and put runs up on the board.” – Blue Jays second baseman Cavan Biggio
Players to watch:
Photo by Adam Glanzman/Getty Images
Boston Red Sox- Alex Verdugo:After arriving to Boston via the Mookie Betts trade, Alex Verdugo as found his spot in the Red sox line. He walked as a pinch-hitter on Sunday against the Orioles and is still holding on to a 13-game hitting streak. So far this season, Verdugo has 28 hits, five home runs and a .298 batting average.
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Toronto Blue Jays- Teoscar Hernandez: Hernandez has exhibited a tremendous amount of power at the plate this season. He ranks 10th in the MLB in Isolated Power .343 and leads the Blue Jays with 10 home runs and 30 hits on the season. In Sunday’s 5-4 loss to the Rays, Hernandez walked three times, hit solo home run and stole two bases in the sixth inning. The Red Sox might have tough time finding a way to get him out this series.
Magic Number- (103): It’s been 103 years since the Boston Red Sox last played in Buffalo, NY. On July 6, 1917, the defending World Series Champion Red Sox defeated the Buffalo Bisons 9-7 in an exhibition game at Buffalo Baseball Park, 22-year-old Babe Ruth was part of that team. On the hill, he finished the 1917 season with a 2.01 ERA and a 24-13 record. At the plate he managed to compile a .325 batting average to go along with two home runs.
Ty B’s Trends:Last season the Jays were 8-11 vs the Red Sox. The Sox took 2-of-3 in their first series together in 2020. The under is 4-1 in Boston’s last five games. It is also 8-1 in the Blue Jays’ last nine against opponents with sub-.400 winning percentages. Plus, in the last 8 meetings the under is 7-1. However, the over is 6-2 at Sahlen Field.
On the Hill: The Blue Jays kick-off their seven game home stand tonight. The first three games of the home stand have a 6:37PM start.
Tuesday:Chase Anderson (0-0, 2.79 ERA) vs. Kyle Hart (0-1, 11.12 ERA)
Wednesday: TBA vs. Nathan Eovaldi (2-2, 4.98 ERA)
Thursday: Hyun-Jin Ryu (2-1, 3.19 ERA) vs. TBA
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