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GDT: Blue Jays @ Rays Game 3 of 4

Spanky99

By Spanky99
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Spanky99 GOAT

Spanky99

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Toronto Blue Jays Line-up...

 

1. Devon Travis ® 2B

2. Josh Donaldson ® 3B

3. Jose Bautista ® RF

4. Kendrys Morales (S) DH

5. Troy Tulowitzki ® SS

6. Steve Pearce ® LF

7. Russell Martin ® C

8. Justin Smoak (S) 1B

9. Kevin Pillar ® CF

 

SP Aaron Sanchez RHP...

 

Sanchez likely will end up becoming the ace but he opens as the No. 5 starter following a slightly delayed start to the spring. He's the reigning AL-ERA leader and considering this is his second full year of starting he might be even better in 2017.

 

Tampa Bay Rays Line-up...

 

1. Corey Dickerson (L) DH

2. Kevin Kiermaier (L) CF

3. Evan Longoria ® 3B

4. Brad Miller (L) 2B

5. Steven Souza Jr. ® RF

6. Logan Morrison (L) 1B

7. Derek Norris ® C

8. Mallex Smith (L) LF

9. Tim Beckham ® SS

 

Chris Archer RHP...

 

Archer had strong Opening Day performance Sunday when he held the Yankees to two runs in seven innings to pick up his first win of the season. He went 1-1 with a 3.09 ERA in four starts against the Blue Jays last season.

 

Preview

 

By Gregor Chisholm / MLB.com

 

A pair of potential candidates for the American League Cy Young Award will square off when the Rays and Blue Jays meet again on Saturday night at Tropicana Field.

 

Chris Archer vs. Aaron Sanchez in the type of dream matchup for everyone who loves a good pitchers' duel. They're coming off very different 2016 seasons, but when you think about some of the best pitchers in the AL, these two immediately jump to mind.

 

Archer is coming off a season in which he led the league with 19 losses while posting a 4.02 ERA. Those are pretty jarring numbers for someone with his ability, but he's looking to bounce back and is off to a good start after allowing two earned runs over seven innings in his season debut vs. the Yankees.

 

"If you can't be self-motivated, then you can't be truly motivated at all," Archer said in a philosophical way when asked about carrying momentum over from that start. "It helps when guys around you continue to keep things going. But you have to be self-motivated all the time. Same thing in live, in general."

 

Sanchez's 2016 season could not have gone much better. He won a starting job late in Spring Training and eventually went on to lead the AL with a 3.00 ERA. The expectation is that he will pick up right where he left off in his season debut, but it's worth noting he was hampered late in camp with a blister on his right hand.

 

The blister apparently has since completely healed over and is not expected to be a factor in this start but it's a situation that will be worth monitoring in the coming weeks. As long as he's healthy, the Blue Jays expect big things again in 2017.

 

"I think the sky is the limit," Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said of Sanchez. "I think he's just going to get better and better with experience. I think once he masters his offspeed stuff, his curveball and his changeup, he's going to be really, really tough. There's no telling how good he is going to be. Of course, he has to go out and do it but he has a chance to be one of the better ones for a long time."

 

• Toronto has seen Archer plenty of times before, but has not enjoyed much success. Jose Bautista is a career .190 hitter (8-for-42) while Josh Donaldson has a .115 average (3-for-26) vs. the Rays' ace. Newcomer Kendrys Morales is an exception to the rule as he's a .625 hitter (10-for-16) with a pair of home runs and six RBIs off Archer.

 

• The Blue Jays are expected to once again return to their top lineup for this game. Steve Pearce and Russell Martin each received the day off on Friday. Pearce likely will start in left while Justin Smoak should be at first base with the sinkerballer Sanchez on the mound.

 

• Kevin Kiermaier has enjoyed the most success vs. Sanchez, but it has admittedly come in a very small sample size. Kiermaier has three hits in seven at-bats while Evan Longoria has just one hit in 14 at-bats.

 

LETS GO BLUE JAYS *CLAP, CLAP* *CLAP, CLAP, CLAP*

 

LETS GO BLUE JAYS *CLAP, CLAP* *CLAP, CLAP, CLAP*

 

LETS GO BLUE JAYS *CLAP, CLAP* *CLAP, CLAP, CLAP*

 

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Edited by Spanky99
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P2F Toronto Blue Jays

P2F

Old-Timey Member
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Huh? Today's Saturday mate, series started Thursday.
I was just razzing JFL19 for yesterday's GDT.
Ray FCL Blue Jays

Ray

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Holy s*** he swapped Pearce with Martin 4 games in

 

Good job Gibby

 

Gibby 2.0 is the real deal.

P2F Toronto Blue Jays

P2F

Old-Timey Member
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Over/Under 9k's from Archer tonight.
Under, but you need to set the number at a half (i.e. 8.5 or 9.5).
saskjayfan Dunedin Blue Jays

saskjayfan

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Under/over 4 walks Aaron Sanchez?

 

under 4 walks for the game...and over 4 times you question his abilities in the first month of the season until you realize better.

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