Athletics – Bluejays (Series look-ahead and Game 1 Recap)

After a wild game 1 that ended in an 11-10 Toronto victory I might have to declare this the most interesting series we have lined up for us this weekend. The A’s are hot, they took down the Yankees to end their home stand and come out on the road looking to take these games from Toronto and gain ground on the Astros and the wildcard standings. The Bluejays are in desperation mode, after averaging just 3 runs per game in august this team needs to produce more frequently at the plate, the inability to put up runs, and some awful bullpen appearances have put this clubs season on the line. They will have to seriously go on a run for any chance at a wild card spot, and I just don’t see it happening, it will be interesting to see what they can come up with against a really good Oakland squad. Tomorrow’s game is at 3:07 PM ET and the pitching matchup will be Paul Blackburn (2.81 ERA 0-1) Vs. Jose Berrios (3.53 ERA -9-7) who have both looked vulnerable as of late. I have to give the edge to the A’s in this one, they have been able to produce more runs as of late, and will be a bit unnerved about blowing an 8-2 lead last night. Whenever Starling Marty, or Josh Harrison get on base they have been efficient at stealing bags and getting into scoring position, this along with the power the lineup has coming from other areas tell me the A’s will be able to make up for a bad Blackburn start as they hopefully can grab some runs from Berrios. Look for an Athletics victory if the trends continue so far as the A’s producing runs and the Bluejays struggling. But this one shapes up as a good matchup for the Bluejays to get back on track, which I hope they can do to give us an entertaing, and high scoring affair. The Jays are just a bit unpredictable right now as far as what you are gonna get, do we see the team that has been putting up 3 runs per game, or the team that stormed back from down six in the eighth inning to win a thriller. Tomorrow’s matchup will answer a lot of these questions, but I think the fact there is so many questions surrounding this matchup tells you why this will be a great series. Let’s see how it shakes out tomorrow, but I would back an Athletics victory if I was to bet on this game, but I might avoid it due to the uncertainty surrounding the Jays.