Game #45 Preview: Wacha vs Ryu

The Blue Jays will try once again to get a win against the Rays, hoping to put an end to their personal losing streak of 4 games while also ending the Rays’ winning streak at 9 games. Things get underway shortly here, with a 1:07 ET start.

Blue Jays’ Starter

The Jays will send Ace Hyun Jin Ryu to the mound today, hopeful that he can right the ship of the Jays. Very reminiscent of what felt like a lot of Roy Halladay starts - “hey Doc, we haven’t won since your last start. Please get us back in the win column.”

Ryu brings a 4-2 record and 2.51 ERA into today’s start. Over 8 starts, he has thrown 46.2 innings, and is averaging just over 6 innings per start in games when he doesn’t leave due to injury. In those 46.2 innings, he has struck out 45 batters against just 5 walks and 5 strikeouts. Those last two numbers translate to less than 1 per 9 innings, with that walk rate making him 1 of just 2 qualified pitchers below 1.

Ryu faced the Rays earlier this year, in the aforementioned “left due to injury” game. Ryu was cruising before his glute strain forced him out of the game. He threw 3.2 shutout innings, allowing 3 singles and a walk while striking out 5.

Rays’ Starter

Michael Wacha makes his return from the Injured List to make the start today. He had been on the shelf since the beginning of May with a strained hamstring, but is ready to go now.

Wacha has made 4 starts and 2 follower appearances for the Rays so far this season, and has a 1-1 record with a 4.76 ERA. His FIP is a bit better at 4.00, thanks to 26 strikeouts, 8 walks and 4 home runs over 28.1 innings. His worst appearances this year have come as the follower as well, a role he is not used to. He has done fairly well in a traditional starter’s capacity, including 6 shutout innings of 1-hit ball against the Yankees.

Blue Jays’ Lineup

Rays’ Lineup

Yesterday’s Heroes

Ozzie Albies went 2-4 with a pair of home runs, driving in 3 runs to pick up the Monster Bat award. While the offensive outburst wasn’t quite as much as the night before, the Braves still beat the Pirates 6-1.

Garrett Cooper had a big game for the Marlins yesterday, putting them on the doorstep of breaking the 0-0 tie twice, first in the 5th inning with a double (they didn’t score) and again in the 7th with a single (and they did score). However, those were just a warmup for his real WPA King stunt, the walk-off, 2-run home run. In total, Cooper put up .672 WPA in the Marlins 3-1 win over the Mets.

Also in the Marlins’ win, we find the Pitcher of the Day. Starter Pablo Lopez went 7 shutout innings, allowing just 4 hits and a walk while striking out 8.

Find the Link

Find the link between Michael Wacha and Max Schrock.

Stats retrieved from Fangraphs and Baseball Savant