White Sox at Blue Jays
A pair of last-place American League clubs will square off when the Toronto Blue Jays host the Chicago White Sox on Friday night in the opener of a three-game series. Despite sitting at the bottom of the AL East and AL Central, the Blue Jays and White Sox each enter the series with some momentum, having won three of their last four.
Chicago scored 27 runs in its four-game set against Baltimore, with designated hitter Matt Davidson leading the way by homering in each game to boost his season total to 14. White Sox right fielder Avisail Garcia was ejected from Thursday's 5-2 victory, but not before he ran his hitting streak to eight games with a pair of singles. Toronto appeared poised to make a move in the standings after closing out last month on an 8-1 run but it has split 12 games in June. Jose Bautista and Russell Martin each had two hits in Wednesday's 7-6 win over Tampa Bay after enduring slumps of 4-for-38 and 1-for-17, respectively.
TV: 7:07 p.m. ET, CSN Chicago, Sportsnet, Sportsnet One (Toronto)
PITCHING MATCHUP: White Sox LH José Quintana (2-8, 5.30 ERA) vs. Blue Jays RH Joe Biagini (1-5, 3.38)
Quintana has gone more than six weeks without a victory, falling to 0-4 in his last seven starts after giving up three runs over five innings in a loss at Cleveland last time out. He did not factor in the decision on June 6 at Tampa Bay, tossing 5 1/3 innings of one-run ball, but was hammered for 15 runs in his previous two turns. Kendrys Morales is 13-for-38 with two homers against Quintana.
Biagini is emerging as a reliable option since he was shifted from the bullpen to the rotation, although it's not reflected in his won-loss record. He has lost three consecutive starts despite allowing only six earned runs over 20 innings, a span in which Toronto supplied him with three runs. He made two relief appearances against Chicago last season, giving up one run and three hits.
WALK-OFFS
1. Davidson has 10 RBIs in the past six games after collecting one in his previous 11 contests.
2. Blue Jays SS Troy Tulowitzki is 2-for-24 with zero extra-base hits in his last six games.
3. White Sox 1B Jose Abreu is 8-for-16 during a four-game hitting streak.