The Blue Jays had a deep post-season run, coming so close to winning a championship. But they stumbled out of the gate in their attempt to run it back, losing 12 of 15 in April, a hole that they struggled to emerge from. They have suffered some injuries, but most of their decline has come from a lackluster offense. They are second-from-last in baseball in home runs, third-from last in on-base percentage, and dead last in runs scored. Only eight qualified hitters have fewer home runs than Vladimir Guerrero. Kazuma Okamoto is third among all rookies in home runs with 26.
Kansas City Royals (58-74) vs. Toronto Blue Jays (64-68) at Rogers Centre, Toronto, ON
Royals: 4.24 runs scored/game (22nd in MLB), 4.93 runs allowed/game (26th)
Blue Jays: 3.95 runs scored/game (30th), 4.36 runs allowed/game (13th)
Who’s hot:
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Alejandro Kirk got off to an awful start, but is hitting .366/.440/.548 with five home runs in his last 26 games.
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Vinnie Pasquantino is hitting .385/.448/.769 in his seven games since returning from the Injured List.
Who’s not:
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Nathan Lukes is hitting just .184/.234/.287 in his last 26 games.
Notable matchups:
Shane Bieber was supposed to pitch on Wednesday, but he was placed on the Injured List and the Jays currently do not list a starter for Wednesday or Thursday. They could start Simeon Woods Richardson, who has been pitching in relief since the Jays acquired him. He has a 1.04 ERA in 17.1 innings with them, but with 10 walks. Royals hitters are batting .366/.422/.439 against Spencer Arrighetti in his two career starts.
The Jays have a 3.78 bullpen ERA, and they have two pitchers – Louis Varland and Tyler Rogers – who are among the eight lowest reliever ERAs in baseball. Spencer Miles has a 1.76 ERA in 36 relief appearances. The Jays picked up Paul Sewald, who was let go by the Diamondbacks last week.
The Jays won’t be back in the World Series, but they are far from a bad team. The Royals have been hot, but the reigning AL champs could be a good test whether this run is fluky or the sign of a team that has figured things out in the second half.
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