Game #148 Preview: Red Sox @ Blue Jays

The Blue Jays will look to stretch their AL East lead further this afternoon (at 4pm!) as they take on the Red Sox once again. Up until the Jays loss last Sunday, the team had won every R.A. Dickey start dating back to July 18 which is pretty remarkable when you consider how the veteran started the season. Today, Dickey will face off against Wade Miley who has also been much better in the second half of the season. The lefty has a 4.41 ERA on the year, which on the surface looks like the worst year of his career. If you look slightly deeper, you'll see his 3.65 FIP is bettered only by his 2012 campaign where he finished second in NL Rookie of the Year voting to Bryce Harper. Tough competition eh?

Miley has faced the Jays twice this year, on May 8 and July 2, allowing eight earned runs over 11.0 combined innings in two starts with very different peripherals. On the first occasion, the southpaw struck out eight while walking one, but the second time around he struck out just two while walking seven batters! In a dreadful Sox rotation, Miley has been one of the most valuable hurlers (not saying much) and is second in pitching WAR on the team behind only Clay Buchholz.

Miley, a former Diamondback, throws the four main pitches although his fastball is usually of the sinking variety. He doesn't strike out many hitters and as you would predict, throws a fastball and slider against lefties and a fastball, changeup combination against righties. There isn't a whole lot more to Miley than that, as he's settled into the middle of the rotation guy that he looks sure to be for the rest of his career. For his fairly affordable contract, that's not a horrible outcome for the Red Sox.

Here's a visual look at the movement on his pitches:

Hopeful Lineup

From the sounds of it, Russell Martin will be catching R.A. Dickey most of the time these days.

1. Ben Revere LF
2. Josh Donaldson 3B
3. Jose Bautista RF
4. Edwin Encarnacion DH
5. Chris Colabello 1B
6. Russell Martin C
7. Ryan Goins SS
8. Kevin Pillar CF
9. Cliff Pennington 2B

Bullpen Usage

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