It wasn’t pretty on Friday night as Yusei Kikuchi struggled in what could be his last start in a Blue Jays uniform, but when it mattered most, the Blue Jays’ bats showed up.
They had a solid first inning scoring three runs, tacking on single runs in the fourth and seventh innings. With the score tied at five in the bottom of the ninth, the bases loaded for Ernie Clement, who singled to left field to drive in the game-winning run.
The Blue Jays hope Saturday will see a solid start from Kevin Gausman at home, something that’s been few and far between. He’s given up eight or more runs in three of 10 home starts this year, and six or more in four of them. Against an offence like the Rangers — one which has struggled at times, but features some big bats that’s not always the greatest of news. Most notably, Gausman has struggled dealing with Corey Seager in the past, giving up a 1.525 OPS in 22 plate appearances to him.
The Rangers, meanwhile, send Michael Lorenzen to the mound.
First pitch: 3:07 p.m. EST.
TV & Radio: Sportsnet, SN590.
Odds via Bet365:
Moneyline: TOR -135; TEX +115.
Spread: TOR -1.5 +150; TEX +1.5 -180.
Over/Under: o8.5 -110; u8.5 -110
*Odds at the time of publishing. Odds subject to change.
Starting pitchers:
| Name | Team | GS
|
W
|
L
|
IP
|
ERA
|
xERA
|
ERA-
|
FIP
|
WHIP
|
K/9
|
BB/9
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kevin Gausman | TOR | 20 | 8 | 8 | 110.2 | 4.55 | 5.14 | 115 | 3.92 | 1.30 | 8.86 | 2.44 |
| Michael Lorenzen | TEX | 17 | 5 | 5 | 97.0 | 3.53 | 4.78 | 86 | 5.09 | 1.24 | 6.77 | 4.27 |
Lineups:
BLUE JAYS:
- G Springer (R) RF
- S Horwitz (L) 1B
- V Guerrero Jr. (R) 3B
- J Turner (R) DH
- D Varsho (L) CF
- A Kirk (R) C
- D Schneider (R) 2B
- E Clement (R) SS
- S Berroa (S) LF
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Zach Laing is the Nation Network’s news director and senior columnist. He can be followed on Twitter at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach@thenationnetwork.com.