The Toronto Blue Jays might not be able to outslug everyone in the American League East, but they appear willing to try. The Blue Jays look to keep up their hot hitting when they aim for a second straight road win over the Baltimore Orioles on Saturday.
Toronto opened the three-game set with a 12-5 victory, banging out 16 hits and using two big innings to spoil Baltimore's home opener. The Blue Jays have scored 27 runs during a 3-1 start, and now they have slugger Jose Bautista on track after going 3-for-3 with two RBIs and scoring four runs Friday. The Orioles also saw their top hitter break out of a mini slump, as Adam Jones went 4-for-4 with two RBIs and two runs, but Baltimore's pitching staff endured its worst day of the young season. The Orioles are trying to avoid losing their first home series for the third straight season.
TV: 7:05 p.m. ET, SNET (Toronto), MASN (Baltimore)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Blue Jays RH Aaron Sanchez (2014: 2-2, 1.09 ERA) vs. Orioles RH Ubaldo Jimenez (2014: 6-9, 4.81)
Sanchez is set to make his first major-league start after pitching well out of the bullpen after being called up last July. The 22-year-old made 24 relief appearances last season and allowed only four earned runs in 33 innings with an impressive 27-to-9 strikeout-to-walk ratio. Sanchez was primarily a starter during five seasons in the minors, making 77 starts and 16 relief appearances.
Jimenez struggled in his first season with Baltimore but pitched well enough this spring to earn the No. 5 spot in the rotation. The 31-year-old is a notoriously slow starter, though, having gone 10-13 with a 5.23 ERA in 32 career starts in April. Jimenez is 3-3 with a 4.63 ERA in nine games (eight starts) against the Blue Jays, who beat him twice last season.
WALK-OFFS
1. The Orioles' current roster is a combined 0-for-10 with four strikeouts against Sanchez, but no one has more than three plate appearances against him.
2. Bautista, who was 0-for-12 before breaking out Friday, is 2-for-26 with five strikeouts versus Jimenez.
3. Blue Jays SS Jose Reyes is a career .405 hitter at Camden Yards and has hit safely in 16 of his 17 games played there after going 3-for-5 on Friday.