Blue Jays at Indians
The Cleveland Indians look to pull out of their tailspin and maintain a tenuous position atop the American League Central when they open a seven-game homestand against the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday night. The Indians lead the Minnesota Twins by one-half game in the division despite losing six of their last seven contests after falling 5-4 at last-place San Francisco on Wednesday.
“As a team, we’re going to have some ups and downs,” Cleveland pitcher Carlos Carrasco told the Plain Dealer on Wednesday. “Not just us, but the 29 other teams in the big leagues. It’s going to happen. We’re going to start fresh and get ready for the next series.” Trevor Bauer looks to rebound from his shortest outing of the season when he takes the mound in the series opener for the Indians and will oppose struggling right-hander Marco Estrada. The Blue Jays split four games with AL East-leading Boston after taking the finale 8-6 on Thursday as All-Star Justin Smoak continued his career-best season with a pair of homers to push his total to 26. Smoak is 9-for-20 with six RBIs during his current five-game hitting streak and Kevin Pillar, who was rested from the starting lineup Thursday, has hit safely in four straight contests.
TV: 7:10 p.m. ET, Sportsnet (Toronto), STO (Cleveland)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Blue Jays RH Marco Estrada (4-6, 5.33 ERA) vs. Indians RH Trevor Bauer (7-8, 5.59)
Estrada has not made it through five innings in five of his last six outings and went 0-2 in that span to extend his losing streak to four games overall. The 34-year-old Mexico native allowed four runs on five hits and four walks over 3 2/3 innings in a no decision at Detroit on Sunday. Carlos Santana (3-for-5) and Michael Brantley (2-for-3) have each homered against Estrada, who has a 3.75 ERA in two career starts versus Cleveland.
Bauer could not get through the first inning in his last start Sunday at Oakland, permitting four runs on three hits and three walks while retiring just two batters. It was the second straight loss and third in four starts for the 26-year-old UCLA product, who has given up at least four runs in half of his 18 outings. Russell Martin is 3-for-6 with a homer versus Bauer, who gave up four runs on six hits over six innings to lose at Toronto on May 8.
WALK-OFFS
1. Toronto 3B Josh Donaldson is hitting .333 with seven homers, 32 RBIs and 27 runs scored in 32 career games versus Cleveland.
2. Brantley has hit safely in five straight games while teammate DH Edwin Encarnacion is just 2-for-18 in his last six contests.
3. The Blue Jays took two of three from the Indians on May 8-10 after losing to Cleveland in the AL championship series in 2016.