The Toronto Blue Jays‘ run of games against National League playoff contenders continues this week with a two-game mini-series against the Philadelphia Phillies at Rogers Centre.
The defending National League champs are leading a tight race for the three wild-card spots in the senior circuit.
The Blue Jays and Phillies are coming off a much-needed off-day after both teams played 17 games in the previous 17 days.
Here’s a look at a Blue Jays-Phillies series featuring four starters with a combined five all-star selections.
Probable Pitchers
Tuesday, 7:07 p.m. ET / 4:07 p.m. PT: Toronto LHP Yusei Kikuchi (9-4, 3.53 ERA) vs. Philadelphia RHP Zack Wheeler (9-5, 3.74 ERA)
Wednesday, 7:07 p.m. ET / 4:07 p.m. PT: Toronto RHP Kevin Gausman (9-6, 3.04 ERA) vs. Philadelphia RHP Aaron Nola (9-8, 4.49 ERA)
Both games on Sportsnet and Sportsnet NOW.
Latest on the Blue Jays
The Blue Jays (66-54) avoided a three-game sweep at the hands of the visiting Chicago Cubs with an elusive offensive outburst in an 11-4 win on Sunday.
Outfielder Daulton Varsho, whose struggles at the plate have been well-documented this season, keyed a five-run second with a three-run home run and finished the afternoon with five RBI.
The five runs Toronto put up that inning were more than they scored in any other full game the entire week.
Second baseman Whit Merrifield continued his strong season, going 4-for-6.
The Blue Jays are two games up on Seattle for the third and final wild-card spot in the American League after the Mariners lost 7-6 to the lowly Kansas City Royals on Monday in their series opener.
Latest on the Phillies
The Phillies (65-54) wrapped up a 10-game homestand with a 6-4 record after losing the final two games of a weekend series against the Minnesota Twins.
Canadian-born manager Rob Thomson and third baseman Alec Bohm were both ejected in the finale. Thomson was tossed after arguing balls and strikes and Bohm was sent to the clubhouse when he voiced his disapproval after he struck out looking with the bases loaded in the seventh inning of a 3-0 loss.
The homestand was highlighted by Michael Lorenzen’s no-hitter in just his second start with the Phillies last week against the Washington Nationals. The Phillies acquired the 2023 AL all-star from the Detroit Tigers at the trade deadline.
The Phillies are two games ahead of the San Francisco Giants in the race for the top wild-card spot, which comes with home-field advantage in the wild-card round.
Watch out for…
Phillies shortstop Trea Turner.
Turner was 17-for-39 (.436) with eight extra-base hits (two home runs) during the team’s homestand.
Injury Report
Phillies star Bryce Harper left one game early and missed another because of back spasms on the homestand. He was designated hitter in the last two games. Harper could return to first base at some point this week.
Phillies outfielder Brandon Marsh is expected to be out until late August after suffering a knee injury last week while crashing into the centre-field wall attempting to make a catch.
The Blue Jays are hoping to activate closer Jordan Romano (lower back inflammation) on Tuesday after he pitched a scoreless inning for triple-A Buffalo in a rehab appearance on Saturday.
Third baseman Matt Chapman was a late scratch with middle finger inflammation on Sunday. The hope is it is a short-term absence.
Star shortstop Bo Bichette (right patellar tendinitis) could return by the end of this week or next week.
Outfielder Kevin Kiermaier (right elbow laceration) is eligible to return Friday.
Toronto Connection
The Blue Jays drafted Nola, Tuesday’s Phillies starter, in the 22nd round in 2011 out of high school in Louisiana.
But Nola opted to go to LSU instead of signing with Toronto. Three years later, the Phillies picked him seventh overall.
In that same 2014 draft, the Blue Jays selected right-hander Jeff Hoffman ninth overall. He was considered a possible first-overall pick before he underwent Tommy John surgery.
Hoffman made it to double-A with the Blue Jays before he was shipped to the Colorado Rockies in the Troy Tulowitzki deal in July 2015.
While Hoffman, 30, has bounced around, he has enjoyed success this year after originally signing a minor-league contract with the Phillies. He is 3-2 with a career-best 2.88 ERA in 34.1 innings out of the bullpen.
Season Series
The Phillies swept a mini-series against visiting Toronto in May.
The finale was a 2-1 Philly win in 10 innings, ending on a Bo Bichette throwing error after strong starts for Gausman and Wheeler.
The opener was an 8-4 Philly win, with the Phillies scoring three in the eighth off against Toronto reliever Trevor Richards to break the game open. Nola started for Philly and was solid (two runs in six innings).
Out of Town
Two teams chasing Toronto are facing two of the worst teams in baseball this week.
The Mariners have three more games in Kansas City after Monday’s loss, while the Boston Red Sox, three games behind Toronto, open a three-game series in Washington against the Nationals on Tuesday
Up Next
After an off-day Thursday, the Blue Jays begin a weekend series in Cincinnati against the up-and-coming Reds.
