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The Toronto Blue Jays hold a 4.5 game lead over the second place Baltimore Orioles in the American League East. This weekend could be a huge game-changer for both teams as the Blue Jays will travel to Camden Yards to take on the Orioles in a 4-game set.
So far this season, the Jays have had great success. Their 39-28 record is tied for second best in Major League Baseball and their 19-11 mark on the road is a big reason why they are first in the AL East. It is hard to look at this Blue Jays’ team without noticing Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion. The hard-hitting duo has combined for 35 home runs and 98 RBIs. The Blue Jays are a scary-looking team, as long as these two are in the lineup. Bautista’s inability to stay healthy the last few seasons has been a big reason why the Blue Jays have not seen the postseason. However, if the two can somehow stay healthy for a whole year, the sky is the limit for the Blue Jays.
With all of the attention on the bats, not many people have noticed the Blue Jays’ 11th ranked starting pitching. Mark Buehrle has emerged as the Ace for Toronto as his 2.04 ERA is second in the American league, behind only the New York Yankees’ Masahiro Tanaka. The big surprise so far for the Jays has been 23-year-old Drew Hutchison. The Florida native owns a season mark of 4-4 with a 3.96 ERA. Buehrle and Hutchison will start the first two games against the Orioles. Although the Blue Birds have struggled the past week, losing four of their last five, they are still a dangerous team and could be trouble for the division hopefuls New York Yankees and Baltimore Orioles.
The Orioles, on the other hand, have been an up and down team this season. Although they are second in the AL East, they are only two games above .500. Prior to the start of the season, the Orioles had what was considered the most dangerous lineup on paper. However, the injury to All-Star catcher Matt Wieters has proven to be a big obstacle for them. Wieters is scheduled to visit Dr. James Andrews on Monday to check out his throwing arm. He is still throwing every other day, but is still experiencing some discomfort. If Wieters goes under the knife to repair his arm, the Orioles will be forced to finish the season with rookie Caleb Joseph and newly acquired Nick Hundley.
Besides Wieters, both Chris Davis and Manny Machado have been struggling. Although Davis has ten homeruns, last year’s performance by him has put a lot of weight on his shoulders. The two former All-Stars are nowhere near the level of play that carried the team last year. Davis has already missed some of the season as he had a DL stint for an oblique that kept him out of play for a few weeks. Machado has not shown the same desire for the gaps that he had last year. He has a batting average below .220 and, in last night’s 6-0 win against the Boston Red Sox, he batted in the seven hole. Machado has been usually holding the second spot in the batting order. VP Dan Duquette has said that a demotion for Machado could be possible, if the third baseman does not start to pick up his play.
Although the Orioles have some problems, they are still within striking distance of first place Toronto and will have a chance to get even closer with the weekend’s series between the two. The Orioles are coming off a rubber match victory over the Red Sox that brought them within 5 of the Jays and increased their record to 33-31. Chris Tillman had a shaky, but great start against the Red Sox in the second game. He went six innings and gave up only one run, but he took the loss, as the Orioles’ bats were unable to get it going.
Kevin Gausman will start the first game of the Blue Jay series and he will look to add a second straight quality start. In his last start against the Oakland Athletics, the 23-year-old was beautiful. He got the win while holding one of the league’s best teams to one run on four hits, striking out 6. In game two of the series, Ubaldo Jimenez will get the ball and will look to start earning his money, as he has been anything but an “Ace” so far for the Orioles. The 50 million dollar man has pitched to an ERA over 5.00 and has yet to find his groove. The Orioles will also be hoping that Nelson Cruz will find his swing again, as the veteran has been struggling as of late. JJ Hardy is still looking for his first home run of the season. The short stop has hit at least 20 home runs in every season that he has been with the Orioles.
This series could be a game-changer for both teams. The Orioles could come away only trailing the first place Jays by a half game. Or, the Blue Jays could show the rest of the division that they own the AL East this year. Not many series in the last few years between these two have carried as much weight as this weekend’s series will, but Camden Yards will be most likely filled as if this series will decide the season.
AJ Risser is a writer for CouchRiderReport.net, follow him on Twitter.