The Toronto Blue Jays and New York Yankees both have their sights set on the playoffs as the final stretch of the season begins. The Blue Jays made several big trades at the deadline to acquire both Troy Tulowitzki and David Price in order to get the wild card spot while the Yankees stayed put as they lead the American League East standings. Now they square off for the weekend series.
The Blue Jays are on a role. They swept the Minnesota Twins while winning their last eight of nine games averaging 6.3 runs per game during that time frame. Players like Edwin Encarnacion is a big player in that role. He is 14 for 32 with a nine-game hitting streak as he comes into Yankees Stadium batting .440 there. He is helping the Blue Jays get the wild card spot as they pull within one half-game of the Los Angeles Angels while trailing New York by 4 ½ games. They are looking to end a 22-year playoff drought which is the longest in the league.
RA Dickey takes the mound as he is 6-10 with a 4.06 ERA on the year. He is not having the best season, but he is 4-0 with a 1.12 ERA in his career against the Yankees. He has given up just two runs in the last 14 1/3 innings. Lately Dickey has been looking strong. He is 3-0 with a 0.92 ERA in his last four starts while the Blue Jays give him the run support needed.
Nathan Eovaldi will take the mound for New York as he is 11-2 with a 4.30 ERA. He is looking to come back after a 13-6 win against the White Sox. He gave up just three runs in over five innings of play. The Yankees are feeding him with support as they average 7.8 runs per game with Eovaldi on the mound. The Yankees would prefer if the pitcher could last longer in order to save the bullpen. New York has currently homered in 12 straight games this season as players like Jacoby Ellsbury are swinging the bats well at this point in the year.