Orioles at Blue Jays
Toronto Blue Jays slugger Jose Bautista may be in the midst of a banner week, however the 36-year-old has struggled mightily throughout his career against Ubaldo Jimenez. After homering for the second time in three games, Bautista carries a six-game hitting streak into Thursday's finale of the three-game series against Jimenez and the visiting Baltimore Orioles.
Bautista is 11-for-26 with six RBIs and five runs scored during his hit streak, but is an astounding 3-for-38 with 11 strikeouts in his career versus Jimenez. Justin Smoak, who is batting a robust .349 this month, launched his career-high 21st homer in Wednesday's 4-0 victory over Baltimore, but his 2-for-21 performance against Jimenez leaves plenty to be desired. While the American League East cellar-dwelling Blue Jays posted just their third win in 11 encounters versus the Orioles, the latter saw its three-game winning streak come to a halt. Trey Mancini, who is 11-for-25 against Toronto this season, has hit safely in eight straight games and 17 of his last 18 overall.
TV: 7:07 p.m. ET, MASN2 (Baltimore), Sportsnet (Toronto)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Orioles RH Ubaldo Jimenez (2-3, 7.26 ERA) vs. Blue Jays LH J.A. Happ (2-4, 3.83)
Jimenez was shellacked for a season-high nine runs on seven hits in 2 1/3 innings to take the loss in Friday's 15-5 setback at Tampa Bay. The 33-year-old Dominican also surrendered two homers and walked four batters for the second straight outing after being taken deep just once and issuing one free pass in his previous four outings. Jimenez traditionally has pitched well versus Toronto, posting a 7-5 career mark in 18 career appearances while flustering Josh Donaldson (5-for-28) among others.
Happ turned in his third straight strong start on Friday by allowing one run on four hits over 6 2/3 innings of a no-decision at Kansas City. The 34-year-old owns a 2-0 mark with a 1.86 ERA in his last three outings after yielding four runs on 18 hits while striking out 22 in 19 1/3 frames. Happ dropped both encounters versus Baltimore this season, surrendering two homers and three runs total in a 3-1 setback on April 5 before working just 4 1/3 frames 11 days later in an 11-4 loss.
WALK-OFFS
1. Baltimore CF Adam Jones is 1-for-11 with five strikeouts in his last three contests on the heels of a seven-game hitting streak.
2. Toronto LF Steve Pearce is 4-for-5 in the series against his former team and is 13-for-26 with six runs scored in his last nine contests.
3. Orioles 3B Manny Machado is 0-for-7 in the series and 6-for-40 versus the Blue Jays this season.