After showing signs of life on offence the past two games, the Toronto Blue Jays will face a stiff challenge in trying to maintain that momentum.
The American League-leading Baltimore Orioles have been a huge problem for the Blue Jays this year, winning eight of 10 games heading into their final series of the season this week at Camden Yards.
The youthful Orioles are the biggest reason that the Blue Jays have such a poor record against AL East competition (11-23).
Toronto is 8.5 games behind the Orioles for first in the division, so anything less than a sweep this week is going to make it tough for the Jays to make a late run at an AL East crown.
Here’s a look at the series.
Probable Pitchers
Tuesday, 7:05 p.m. ET / 4:05 p.m. PT: Toronto LHP Yusei Kikuchi (9-4, 3.44 ERA) vs. Baltimore RHP Grayson Rodriguez (3-3, 5.44 ERA)
Wednesday, 7:05 p.m. ET / 4:05 p.m. PT: Toronto RHP Kevin Gausman (9-7, 3.24 ERA) vs. Baltimore RHP Jack Flaherty (8-8, 4.73 ERA)
Thursday, 7:05 p.m. ET / 4:05 p.m. PT: Toronto RHP Jose Berrios (9-8, 3.39 ERA) vs. Baltimore RHP Dean Kremer (11-5, 4.50 ERA)
All games are on Sportsnet and SN NOW.
Latest on the Blue Jays
The Blue Jays (69-56) took the final two games of a weekend series in Cincinnati against the Reds to open this six-game road trip.
After a frustrating 1-0 loss in Friday’s opener, the Blue Jays got star shortstop Bo Bichette back from injury on Saturday and he produced three hits over the final two games, including a triple in the series-ending 10-3 romp.
That elusive offensive outburst included five home runs.
Meanwhile, left-hander Hyun Jin Ryu (two runs on four hits in five innings) was sharp again in his fourth start back after last year’s Tommy John surgery. He has a 1.89 ERA, helping a team staff that leads the majors with a 3.65 ERA.
The Blue Jays are one game behind the Seattle Mariners for the final wild-card spot and 1.5 back of the Houston Astros for the second spot.
Latest on the Orioles
The Orioles (77-47) crushed the Oakland A’s 12-1 on Sunday to complete a three-game sweep.
That result ended an impressive 6-3 west-coast swing.
Rookie of the year front-runner Gunnar Henderson came up in the eighth a single short of the cycle. He doubled, resisting the temptation to stop at first.
“It kind of went through my head before the at-bat … but I just play the game hard,” Henderson told reporters. “A double, the opportunity was there. That was just the way I play. Wasn’t meant to be.”
Jorge Mateo added an inside-the-park home run and top starter Kyle Bradish struck out eight in six innings.
The Orioles, who have been using a six-man rotation to ease innings concerns among some of their young arms, are three games up on the Tampa Bay Rays for first in the AL East.
Deja Vu
The first two pitching matchups are identical to the last two matchups in a four-game series that ended in early August in Toronto.
Kikuchi gave up one run in six innings before the Blue Jays broke a 1-1 tie in the sixth on a walk and two hit batters by reliever Shintaro Fujinami, who replaced Rodriguez with two men on and two out in the penultimate game of the series.
The next day, Flaherty was dominant in his first start as an Oriole after being acquired from the St. Louis Cardinals. He gave up one run on four hits in six innings as the Orioles rolled to a 6-1 win over Gausman and the Blue Jays along with a 3-1 series victory.
Orioles Flying High
Baltimore is 30 games over .500 for the first time since ending 2014 at 96-26. The Orioles are over .500 before September for the first time since 1997.
Watch Out For …
Noted Blue Jays nemesis Ryan Mountcastle.
The Orioles first baseman was an astounding 11-for-13 with four doubles and three walks against the Blue Jays in the last series.
He is now slashing .344/.404/.651 against the Blue Jays, with 15 homers and 42 RBIs in 49 career games.
Injury Report
Blue Jays star first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was removed late in Sunday’s game with middle finger discomfort after taking a hard swing, but is back in the starting lineup on Tuesday.
Orioles outfielder Anthony Santander (lower back soreness) missed the past two games but is hoping to be back to face Toronto.
Baltimore outfielder Aaron Hicks is back on the IL with a lower back strain after he returned from a hamstring injury. He isn’t eligible to return until after this series.
Out of Town
The visiting Seattle Mariners crushed the Chicago White Sox 14-2 in the opener of a three-game series on Monday. The Mariners are one game up on the Blue Jays for the final wild-card position.
The Houston Astros, fresh off being swept by Seattle, beat the visiting Boston Red Sox 9-4 on Monday in the opener of a four-game series. The Red Sox are 3.5 games behind Toronto.
Up Next
The Blue Jays begin a soft portion of the schedule — five consecutive series against teams with losing records — with a weekend set against the Cleveland Guardians at Rogers Centre.
— With files from AP