Blue Jays at Indians
The Cleveland Indians’ pitching staff is having some trouble keeping the team in games and the offense is producing only sporadically. The Indians will try to draw even at a game apiece in their four-game series when they host the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday.
Cleveland missed out on a chance to earn back-to-back wins for the first time since the season’s opening series when it suffered a 5-1 setback in Thursday’s opener. Starter T.J. House lasted five innings and was reached for five runs in the loss, and the Indians are allowing an average of 6.5 runs while going 1-5 over the last six games. The Blue Jays entered the series with their own pitching issues, losers of five of six, but surrendered only one run while burning through five pitchers on Thursday. Left-hander Jeff Francis worked 2 1/3 innings of relief and has thrown a total of 50 pitches in the last two games for Toronto.
TV: 7:10 p.m. ET, RSN (Toronto), SportsTime Ohio (Cleveland)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Blue Jays LH Mark Buehrle (3-1, 4.94 ERA) vs. Indians RH Carlos Carrasco (2-2, 4.60)
Buehrle suffered his first loss of the season last time out, when he was reached for five runs on 13 hits and a walk in 5 2/3 innings at Tampa Bay. The veteran has surrendered a total of 36 hits in 23 2/3 innings, including four home runs. Buehrle tossed seven scoreless innings in his lone start against Cleveland last season and is 16-17 with a 4.75 ERA in 49 career games against the Indians.
Carrasco was knocked around for five runs on nine hits and a pair of walks in 4 1/3 innings at Detroit on Sunday to suffer his second loss. The Venezuela native was pulled from that start due to general body soreness and has worked a total of 9 1/3 innings since leaving a start in the first inning after being hit with a comebacker on Apr. 14. Carrasco has allowed 11 runs and 16 hits in 9 2/3 career innings against Toronto.
WALK-OFFS
1. Indians OF/1B Nick Swisher (knee surgery) is scheduled to play two more rehab games for Triple-A Columbus before being re-evaluated by the club.
2. Toronto CF Kevin Pillar has doubled in each of the last four games.
3. Cleveland LF Michael Brantley is 13-for-28 over his last seven games.