The Toronto Blue Jays continue their West Coast road trip on Thursday when they begin a four-game series against the Seattle Mariners.
As of Thursday morning, there aren’t betting odds on this game because the Blue Jays have yet to announce a starting pitcher. However, the betting odds should be tight, with Toronto potentially being a slight road favorite.
The Blue Jays are hoping that a visit to Seattle can help them get things turned around after a disastrous first week of July. While they beat the A’s 2-1 on Wednesday, they lost a three-game series to Oakland and are just 2-5 in July.
That stretch has dropped them to fourth in the AL East, although the Blue Jays still hold the final Wild Card spot in the American League.
The Mariners, on the other hand, are 4-1 in July and have won seven of their last eight games. In fact, Seattle can get back to .500 with a win on Thursday.
Of course, the Mariners are 13 games back in the AL West, although they are four games behind Toronto for the final Wild Card spot, making this series a great opportunity to make up ground.
Lost Ace
Seattle will send Marco Gonzales to the mound for Thursday’s series opener. The lefty’s made 16 starts this year, going 4-9 despite posting a solid 3.29 ERA.
Gonzales has pitched well for much of the season, although that hasn’t translated into wins for the Mariners, who are 1-6 in the last seven games he’s started despite Gonzales giving up two runs or less in all but one of those starts.
That misfortune is largely because the Mariners have been erratic offensively. Despite being 7-3 in their last ten games, the Mariners have scored two runs or less six times in those ten games.
Dylan Moore and Julio Rodriguez are both red-hot at the moment, but the rest of the Seattle lineup has struggled, especially with Ty France on the IL.
Missing in Action
Kevin Gausman was initially scheduled to start on Thursday but will be pushed back due to an ankle injury. Veteran Casey Lawrence threw 5.2 innings in relief of Gausman last week and could be a candidate to start or pitch bulk innings in relief.
Of course, Lawrence gave up six runs on seven hits, including two home runs, during that appearance, so there should be plenty of pressure on the entire Toronto bullpen on Thursday.
Meanwhile, Toronto’s usually potent lineup has gone cold thus far in July, with the Blue Jays scoring three runs or less in five of their last six games.
Obviously, the silver lining is that the Jays can heat up quickly with several all-star candidates in the lineup. The Blue Jays have also hit nine homers in their last eight games despite the lineup going cold.
Who’s Hot and Who’s Not?
With the Blue Jays struggling and facing a reliable pitcher like Gonzales, it’ll be tough for Toronto to snap out of the team’s funk.
Not having Gausman or one of their regular starting pitchers available also hurts their chances. Regardless of the odds, bet on the Mariners to win on Thursday and stay hot.
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