Pitcher’s Duel
It didn’t take long for the Toronto Blue Jays to turn around their recent offensive woes, and a matchup against another struggling pitcher could help them continue their resurgence at the plate.
Looking to build off of their best hitting performance of the season, the Blue Jays will try to take advantage of Aaron Harang and the Cincinnati Reds on Wednesday when the teams continue their three-game interleague series.
Oddsmakers from Sportsbook.com have made Toronto -160 money line favorites (MLB Odds) for tonight’s game, the over/under has been set at 7 total runs (Matchup). Current public betting information shows that 73% of bets for this game have been placed on Toronto -160 (View MLB Bet Percentages).
Toronto (37-41) routed Cincinnati 14-1 on Tuesday after snapping a seven-game losing streak with an 8-5 win at Pittsburgh on Sunday. The Blue Jays had scored only 28 runs during their season-high skid, hitting just .208.
Scott Rolen homered and had four RBIs for Toronto, which set a season high in runs and the 22 hits were its most since totaling 25 on Aug. 9, 1999.
Greg Zaun also went deep and drove in three runs to give new manager Cito Gaston a win in his return to Toronto. Gaston, who managed the club from 1989-1997 and served as hitting coach from 2000-01, replaced John Gibbons at the helm on Friday.
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"There’s definitely a better feeling," said Lyle Overbay, who went 3-for-4 and has gone 9-for-21 (.429) with a homer and four RBIs during a five-game hitting streak. "They love Cito here. He’s proven it with what he’s done. Hopefully that buzz will get us over the top."
The Blue Jays, who have won back-to-back games for the first time since a three-game run from May 28-30, roughed up starter Bronson Arroyo for a career-high 10 earned runs and 11 hits in an inning-plus.
"Boy, that’s a tough day at the yard right there," manager Dusty Baker told the Reds’ official Web site. "A lot of their guys got their averages healthy."
Toronto now looks to take advantage of Harang (3-10, 4.33 ERA), who is just 1-5 with a 6.63 ERA in his last seven appearances.
The right-hander was tagged for five runs and 10 hits in five innings of a 7-4 home loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday.
But the Reds have won each of Harang’s last five interleague starts, and he is 5-1 with a 1.62 ERA in his last eight games versus the AL since June 23, 2006.
In his lone appearance against Toronto, Harang gave up two runs and five hits over seven innings in a 2-1 defeat on Aug. 12, 2002, while playing for Oakland.
Cincinnati (35-43) was held to just four hits, two by Brandon Phillips. Rookie first baseman – and Toronto native – Joey Votto went 0-for-3, ending a season-high seven-game hitting streak for the Reds, who have hit just .222 with 22 runs scored in losing seven of the last nine games.
They will try to get out of their slump against Blue Jays ace Roy Halladay (8-6, 2.90), who left his start at Pittsburgh on Friday after he was struck near the right temple by a line drive.
However, there haven’t been any setbacks to keep him from taking the mound.
"I feel fine. Everything checked out, so it’s just back to normal," Halladay told the Blue Jays’ official Web site on Saturday. "I just got a little dizzy when I was walking off, but once I got up here, it went away."
The right-hander scattered six hits and struck out seven in seven innings of Toronto’s 1-0, 12-inning defeat.
Halladay, who is 17-8 with a 3.00 ERA in 32 lifetime interleague games, has gone 5-1 with a 2.86 ERA in his last eight appearances versus the NL since June 24, 2006.
He won his only start against the Reds, limiting them to two runs in eight innings of a 9-2 victory in 2003.
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