Mark Buehrle (12-5, 3.34 ERA) and Sonny Gray (12-4, 2.06 ERA) start in the last of a three-game series between the Toronto Blue Jays (63-52) and the Oakland Athletics (51-64) at the Rogers Centre. The Blue Jays won the last game 10-3, continuing a 10-game winning streak. Action begins at 12:37 p.m. ET on Thursday, Aug. 13 and can be seen on RSN.
Buehrle pitched 7.0 innings in his last outing, surrendering three runs, striking out one and walking one in a 9-3 win over the Twins. Josh Donaldson (.296, 84 Rs, 31 HRs, 85 RBIs, 4 SBs) continued his strong play yesterday, going 2 for 4 with two runs and two RBIs. Gray went 9.0 innings, surrendering one run and striking out five in a 3-1 win over the Astros in his most recent start. Josh Reddick (.279, 46 Rs, 13 HRs, 60 RBIs, 5 SBs) went 1 for 4 yesterday.
Toronto is a -131 favorite against Oakland and the Over/Under (O/U) for this game is sitting at eight runs. The Blue Jays have recorded an overall money line of +358 and have shown high-level performance as a favorite this season with a record of 44-24. Toronto is an impressive 7-1 as the favorite over its last 10 games. The Blue Jays have no trouble scoring as they lead the AL in home offense with 5.6 runs per home game. The Blue Jays are one of the best in the MLB in terms of home runs with 156. Toronto leads the whole AL in walks at home, earning an average of 3.6 per game. Toronto’s pitching staff has been doing better against opposing offenses during the last 10 games, only allowing an average of 2.4 runs per game, well under their season average of 4.1. The Blue Jays are the top team in the AL at limiting hits during home games, allowing only 7.6 hits per contest to their opponents this season.
In the other locker room, Oakland is coming in with an overall money line of -2,042 and a disappointing record of 20-31 as the underdog. Oakland is excellent at not striking out with just 6.6 per game, ranking second in the AL.
The Blue Jays lead the season series, 4-1. The Blue Jays have a 47-41 record against right-handed starting pitchers on the year, which is what they’ll be facing when Gray takes the mound. Buehrle (RHP) will be on the hill against the Athletics, who have a 42-42 record against right-handed starting pitchers.
Predictions: SU Winner – Tor, O/U – Over
Notes
The Blue Jays are coming into this matchup after a high-scoring game where they scored a whopping 10 runs. The Athletics have a 0-6 record when opponents score that many runs or more.
The Blue Jays are coming into the game with 10 consecutive wins, while the Athletics currently have a losing streak of two.
When they outhit their opponents, the Athletics are 39-13. The Blue Jays have a 52-6 record when outhitting opponents.
Ranking first in runs, Toronto has earned 611 this season. Oakland ranks 13th with 468 runs.
Ranking 12th, Oakland is in the top half of the league in walks, notching 329 this season. Toronto ranks in the top five at fourth with 383.
The Blue Jays are 57-28 in games where they hit one or more home runs. The Athletics are 33-26 when they hit at least one homer.
