The Toronto Blue Jays and the New York Yankees open a three game series on Friday at Yankee Stadium.
New York has lost two in a row following their 1-3 defeat at the hands of Tampa Bay. They now find themselves 10.5 games behind the American East league leading Boston Red Sox.
On the other hand, the Toronto Blue Jays have won two in a row entering their Thursday encounter with the Kansas City Royals. The Blue Jays are 30 games behind the Red Sox in the American League East team standings.
The Blue Jays enter Thursday’s games winning three of their last four games including back to back 6-5 wins over the Kansas City Royals on the road. Curtis Granderson hit a grandslam and Kevin Pillar delivered 2 RBIs on Wednesday as the Jays took a 5-1 overall lead in their season series against the Royals.
Pitching has been a big issue for Toronto all-season long. Marco Estrada is the lone starter with at least six wins for the season. Their pitching staff ranks 24th in the majors in ERA at 4.71 and 25th in WHIP at 1.39.
Marcus Stroman will start for the Toronto Blue Jays in the opener of this three game set. The former Duke standout has started a total of 17 games this season and has a record of 4-8 with a 5.03 ERA and a 1.42 WHIP. The 27 year old right hander did not factor in the decision during his most recent start against the Tampa Bay last Sunday.
Stroman gave up one run on five hits and one walk while fanning three batters across five innings of pitch work. He surrendered a single run in the fourth and while he left with a one rund deficit, the Blue Jays rallied to win the game 2-1. Despite his record, Stroman has been sharp as of late, giving up just one earned run in 12 innings pitches during his last two starts.
The Yankees are coming off a 1-3 loss to the Rays on Thursday. In that game, New York loaded up the bases with no outs in the 9th inning but could not get a score on rookie left hander Adam Kolarek. Kolarek escaped the jam and to record his first career save and give the Rays their first series win over the Yankees in New York since 2014.
The struggling Yankees lineup played once again without sluggers Aaron Judge and Gary Sanchez who are both injured. They scored a total of six runs during the entire three game series and now have lost two games in a row. The Yankees hope to snap out of the skid against the Blue Jays on Friday.
Right hander Lance Lynn will take the hill for the New York Yankees on Friday. The 31 year old from Ole Miss has started 22 games this season and has an even record of 8-8 with an ERA of 4.46 and a WHIP of 1.54. Lynn ranks second in the American League with 66 BBs. In his latest start, Lynn gave up one run on five hits and three walks while striking out 8 batters in five innings of work. Although he got a no-decision, the Yankees won 5-3 over the Texas Rangers on 8/11/18.
Lynn has been pitching well since being traded to the New York Yankees at the trade deadline. He has a 0.54 ERA, a 22:4 K:BB ratio and has allowed just 1 run on 12 hits in 16.2 innings pitched with the Yankees. He’s yet to lose in a Yankee uniform with one win and two no-decisions in three starts.
The Blue Jays are 2-5 in their last seven games against opponents with a winning record. They are also just 1-4 in their last five opening games of a series and 2-5 in their last seven games against the Yankees in New York.
On the other hand, the Yankees are 9-3 in their last 12 games against teams with a losing record and are 5-2 in their last five Game 1s of a series. More notably, the Yankees have been solid at home with a 61-22 record in their last 83 games played at Yankee Stadium. They have also won six out of their last seven meetings against the Blue Jays. Overall, the Yankees have lost four times in their last ten games and are currently on a two game slide.
New York may be going the wrong way in the American League East standings but at 75-46, they still have the best record of any team in the AL not named Red Sox. Lynn has looked good with his new team and his been pitching well in a Yankees uniform. Likewise, the Yankees are 42-20 at home this season and again, that’s the best record in the AL for any team not based in Boston. All signs point to a Yankees win on Friday. We’re picking the New York Yankees to beat the Toronto Blue Jays on 8/17/18.
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