Game #125 Preview: Giolito vs Ray

The Blue Jays and White Sox continue their 4 game series at Rogers Centre today, playing game 3 tonight. The game is scheduled to get underway at the regular 7:07 ET start time.

Blue Jays’ Starter

The Jays will send out their best pitcher in Robbie Ray, trying once again to get lucky enough to pick up his 10th win. Ray is 9-6 with a 2.79 ERA, the second best ERA in the American League. He is also second in the American League in K%-BB%, as his amazing strikeout rate has been maintained while he has found the ability to limit the walks he is giving. All in all, he is having fantastic year, coming at the best time for him.

Ray faced the White Sox when these two teams met up in Chicago in early June, and Ray had a great start in that one. He made it 6.1 innings, allowing just 1 run on 5 hits, including a home run to Andrew Vaughn that ended his night, and also ensured he would be saddled with a no-decision in his effort. He also struck out 13 batters while walking none in that one.

White Sox’ Starter

Tall right hander Lucas Giolito gets the ball for the White Sox, yet another good starter in their strong rotation. Giolito is somehow 9-9 on the season, coming into play with a 3.77 ERA. He is third in the American League in K%-BB%, but considering those numbers work out to a 3.98 FIP, he’s also struggling with allowing home runs. His 25 allowed puts him tied for 5th in the AL, just ahead of Ray’s 24, but well short of the Texas duo who lead the way with a combined 65.

Blue Jays’ Lineup

Today is the day that George Springer could theoretically be reinstated from the Injured List. I’m fairly certain that isn’t going to happen, but expect to see the Jays give an update on his condition again today. I saw yesterday that he was running the bases, which would suggest his knee is getting fairly close to full strength. He (along with Danny Jansen) will probably just be the additions on September 1 when rosters expand by 2.

And the Jays could definitely use a boost by Springer’s bat. They have scored 3 runs or fewer for 5 straight games now.

White Sox’ Lineup

Prior to yesterday’s game, the White Sox activated Leury García, who presumably will be sharing time with Cèsar Hernández at second base. Both are switch hitters though, so it’ll be a crapshoot to see who La Russa plays on any given day.

Tim Anderson, who is still day-to-day with leg injuries, is probably approaching the point that the White Sox will need to make a decision on a brief Injured List stint. When they announced they were activating García, I actually thought the corresponding move would be Anderson.

The only lefty in the lineup, Brian Goodwin, will most likely be on the bench today against Ray.

Yesterday’s Heroes

Brandon Belt went 4-5 with a pair of home runs, driving in 3 runs to pick up the Monster Bat award. He also helped power his Giants to the 8-0 win over the Mets.

Nelson Cruz and Julio Urías tied for the WPA King, each with lowly .297 marks. It was a pretty unexciting day across the league as far as drama is concerned. Cruz got his with a 2 run 8th inning double that gave his Rays the 3-1 win over the Phillies, while Urías got there with 5 shutout innings against the Padres, as his Dodgers won 5-2.

Luis Garcia threw 6.2 shutout innings to pick up the Pitcher of the Day award. He allowed 4 hits and a walk while striking out 7, and he took home the win as the Astros beat the Royals 4-0.

Find the Link

Find the link between Leury García and Mike Kreevich (and from what I can tell, only Mike Kreevich).

Stats retrieved from Fangraphs and Baseball Savant