The Blue Jays have somehow made it to the postseason, and as someone who wasn’t around here during the 2015 and 2016 runs, I’m thrilled to be here for this one (as strange as it is).
We have some added info and updates:
Blue Jays liked matchup of switch-hitter Jonathan Villar vs. Blake Snell over lefties Travis Shaw or Joe Panik, per manager Charlie Montoyo.
Montoyo has a six-man bench with a third catcher, so would expect plenty of pinch-hit, pinch-run maneuvering as game progresses.
— Arden Zwelling (@ArdenZwelling) September 29, 2020
At 21 years, 328 days, Alejandro Kirk is the second youngest starting DH in post-season history, behind only Claudell Washington, who was 21 years 35 days in the 1975 ALCS. #BlueJays
— Shi Davidi (@ShiDavidi) September 29, 2020
Atkins said Jordan Romano was able to throw hard, throw his slider but team felt it would be unfair to throw him into playoff environment in late inning role, having not faced batters outside of live BPs
— Kaitlyn McGrath (@kaitlyncmcgrath) September 29, 2020
Nate Pearson could be used in Game 1 and 3. Or Game 2. But Atkins didn’t rule out a back-to-back scenario for Pearson if he only faced one batter or threw a low-pitch, efficient inning, for example
— Kaitlyn McGrath (@kaitlyncmcgrath) September 29, 2020
Here are today’s lineups. Kirk will DH, Villar gets the start at 2nd Tesocar bats 6th.
Poll
Will this series make it to a game 3?
-
59%
Most definitely
(62 votes)
-
20%
Nope, Jays in two
(22 votes)
-
20%
Nope, Rays in two
(21 votes)
105 votes total
Vote Now
Poll
How many innings will Matt Shoemaker pitch tonight?
-
42%
0-3
(40 votes)
-
38%
4
(37 votes)
-
15%
5
(15 votes)
-
3%
6+
(3 votes)
95 votes total
Vote Now
Poll
Who will have the best offensive night tonight?
-
6%
Biggio
(6 votes)
-
15%
Bichette
(15 votes)
-
9%
Hernandez
(9 votes)
-
26%
Kirk
(25 votes)
-
19%
Guerrero
(18 votes)
-
19%
Gurriel
(18 votes)
-
0%
Jansen
(0 votes)
-
2%
Villar
(2 votes)
-
1%
Grichuk
(1 vote)
94 votes total
Vote Now
We are glad you are here, and hope you feel welcome. As a reminder, we have rules. Mostly it’s “don’t be terrible,” but these days it’s also, “please debate about baseball and not the coronavirus.” If a moderator asks you to stop doing something, please stop. If you want to discuss the rules, don’t do it in the thread. Email Tom instead. We also have a BBB Glossary full of GameThread lingo you can find here.
