You know that gif from The Simpsons that pops up on the internet every once in a while of the kid saying “Stop! He’s already dead!” That is what would be used to perfectly describe the series between the Toronto Blue Jays and the Baltimore Orioles. Two of the five worst teams in baseball would surely wave the white flag and skip the rest of the season if MLB would allow them.
The Orioles are already well over 100 losses, and the Blue Jays are going to narrowly miss that mark. I guess on the bright side, we get to see some of the young stars that Toronto has to offer, while Baltimore doesn’t have much of any entertainment value at all.
Probable Pitchers
For the Blue Jays, Wilmer Font will make his 16th start of the season while appearing in his 44th game. Font is pitching for his third team this year and his fifth in two years. Font will serve as the opener in this game, as Anthony Kay is expected to get a big portion of the middle innings in this game.
Font has been pretty efficient in the opener role, giving up no runs in eight of his last 12 “opens.” What makes him good in this role is that he strikes out a lot of batters and gives up almost no home runs. Since Aug. 1, he’s made 12 starts and come out of the bullpen twice for 14 appearances and has only given up two home runs. In that same time frame, he has struck out 35 batters, almost half his season total. His K/9 on the season is over 10, a very high mark.
Since Kay is getting a big portion of the innings in this game after Font, let’s touch on him a bit as well. Kay came over to Toronto in the deadline trade that sent Marcus Stroman to the Mets and was struggling in Triple A. He had a 6.61 ERA in seven starts.
However, he came to Triple-A Buffalo after the trade and made seven starts and finished with a 2.50 ERA before getting called up. In his MLB debut, he pitched 5 2/3 innings against the Rays, giving up only two runs and striking out eight.
However, in his next appearance, he blew up against the Yankees, giving up five runs in 4 1/3 innings. So far in his short MLB career, he has been a three-pitch pitcher. His fastball is mid-90s, with a mid-80s change and a 78-80 MPH curveball.
Gabriel Ynoa will make another spot start for the Orioles, his 12th of the season. He’s 1-8 with a 5.74 ERA. He doesn’t really strike anyone out, 5.47 K/9, and gives up a lot of home runs, 19.2% HR/FB. However, his last two spot starts were effective. He went four innings against the Tigers, giving up two runs, and 6 1/3 innings against the Rays, giving up two runs.
Batters To Watch
Toronto has a few terrific young players that are fun to watch play. Vladamir Guerrero Jr. will probably finish second in the AL ROY voting, as he currently has 15 home runs and 65 RBI. Cavan Biggio hit for the cycle earlier this week and is batting .232 in his rookie season. Bo Bichette has been insane since being called up, currently batting .316 in the leadoff role.
And while overshadowed by the other young stars, Lourdes Gurriel is not to be forgotten. After an abysmal April, he was sent down to Triple-A. Since being called back up, he’s been terrific. He’s raised his average to .282 with 19 home runs and 48 RBI in 81 games.
The Pick
Who cares? Just kidding. In reality, Toronto’s bats are terrific, and Kay showed flashes in that Tampa Bay game that he could be good. Font will start the game with two solid innings before Kay takes over, and Toronto will take the final game of the series.
