TORONTO BLUE JAYS NOTES:
THE LATEST: The Blue Jays were doubled up by the Orioles yesterday, 4-2, in the final game of their three-game set at Camden Yards…Dropped to an even 11-11 in series finales and 4-3 in rubber games this season… Are now 13-9-0 in series play this year and 6-6-0 on the road. Toronto has still gone 9-5 over its last 14 games and 12-7 over the last 19…Can improve to 13-10 in series openers with a win tonight.
JANO-BOMB (X2): Danny Jansen went deep twice yesterday, blasting solo shots in the 3rd and 5th innings off Orioles starter Tyler Wells…Marked his 2nd multi-HR game of the season (also: April 25 vs. CWS) and the 6th of his career…His six multi-homer games as a catcher trail only J.P. Arencibia (7) for the most in Blue Jays history…Is the only Toronto batter with multiple home runs in a game this season…Six of his eight longballs this year have come against AL East opponents. The Elmhurst, IL, native also picked up a single in the 7th inning, finishing the day 3-for-4, his 3rd three-hit effort of the year…Over his last 17 games, has gone 17-for-62 (.274) with five doubles, five homers, and 15 RBI for a .597 SLG% and an .894 OPS.
FEELING MERRI: Whit Merrifield doubled and walked on Thursday, part of a 1-for-3 afternoon…Extended his hitting streak to seven games, going 10-for-24 (.417) over that stretch with a pair of doubles and a pair of RBI (1.000 OPS). Since May 19th, is hitting .378 (34-for-90) with six doubles, a homer, 10 RBI, and eight walks (.440 OBP, .918 OPS) in 26 games…Over that span, ranks 2nd in the Majors in batting average (1st: Josh Naylor – .391)…On the season, ranks 3rd in the AL in AVG (.308) and 5th in stolen bases (18).
HARD-HITTING FACTS: Vladimir Guerrero Jr. singled in the 6th and 8th innings on Thursday, finishing the day 2-for-4…Was his 18th multi-hit game of the season…His 74 hits are tied for 6th most in the AL. All three balls put in play yesterday left Guerrero’s bat at more than 107mph, including a 116.2mph missile to left in the 6th frame, his 2nd-hardest hit ball of the season (116.7mph double on April 26 vs. CWS)…Has recorded an AL-leading 122 hard-hit balls (95+ MPH) this season, trailing only Ronald Acuña Jr.’s 132 for the most in MLB.
EXTRA! EXTRA!: Bo Bichette split the gap in right center yesterday, notching his 13th double of the season as part of a 1-for-4 day…Doubled in consecutive games for the 2nd time this season (3G from May 4-6)…Was the 200th extra-base hit of his career, reaching the mark in 463 games, the 2nd-fastest player in franchise history to accomplish the feat (1st: Vernon Wells – 451G). Leads all MLB hitters with 95 hits (2nd: Ronald Acuña Jr. – 92)…His .318 batting average also ranks 1st in the AL (4th in MLB), while he is currently 2nd in total bases (152), 6th in SLG (.508), 7th in OPS (.857), T-8th in home runs (14), T-9th in RBI (44), and T-12th in XBH (28).
GAUS-OME STUFF: Kevin Gausman takes the hill today for his 15th start of the season…His 117 strikeouts lead the AL, trailing only Spencer Strider (127) for the most in MLB. Among AL pitchers, the righty is currently 1st in SO/9 (12.15) and 1st in K rate (33.2%)…Also ranks 2nd in FIP (2.54), 5th in SO/BB (5.32), 5th in innings pitched (86.2), and 11th in ERA (3.12).
ON THE ROAD AGAIN: The Blue Jays are off on a three-city, nine-day road trip (1-2 so far)…Own a 19-19 road record this season for a .500 win% (7th in the AL)…After this trio of games against the Rangers, will head out for three contests in Miami (38-31). Blue Jays hitters lead the Majors in road AVG (.268)…Rank 1st among AL clubs in road hits (361), 2nd in road OBP (.332), 2nd in road SLG (.440), and 2nd in road OPS (.772)…The pitching staff ranks 11th in the AL in road ERA (4.42), 12th in road opponents’ average (.260), and 13th in road WHIP (1.37).
LAYING OFF THE DONUTS: The Blue Jays have notched 643 hits this season, behind only Texas (646) for the most in the Majors… Are currently 2nd in the AL in team AVG (.265), 3rd in OBP (.333), 4th in OPS (.757), 6th in SLG (.423), and 6th in extra-base hits (215). The Blue Jays are one of two MLB teams to have scored in every game this season (also: ARI)…Have gone 88 straight games without being shut out, the longest active streak in the Majors (2nd: ARI – 70G)…Is their 3rd-longest such streak in franchise history, and their longest since scoring in 93 consecutive games from April 13-July 15, 1986.
TEXAS-SIZED STREAKS: Kevin Gausman and Chris Bassitt are both slated to start for the Blue Jays in Arlington this weekend… Bassitt’s teams have won each of his last six starts against the Rangers, while Gausman’s clubs have taken each of his last five outings vs. TEX…The only player with a longer active team winning streak against the Rangers is Seattle’s Chris Flexen (7).
VS. THE RANGERS: All-Time: 226-216
2022: 4-2 Road: 98-127
Road: 2-1 Globe Life Field: 3-3
The Blue Jays went 4-2 against the Rangers last season, taking two of three in both teams ballparks… Averaged 10 hits and six runs per game, but were outscored, 37-36, over the six contests…Have not lost a season series against Texas since going 3-6 back in 2012.
Danny Jansen recorded multiple hits in all four of his starts against the Rangers last year, going a combined 10-for-16 (.625) with a double, three homers, and five RBI…Has made 11 career starts vs. TEX, batting .450 (18-for-40) with two doubles, five homers, and nine BI (1.351 OPS)…His career .875 SLG% vs. TEX is the highest mark among active players (min. 40 PA) against the Rangers, and is his highest against any
single opponent (2nd: .725 vs. CWS).
Bo Bichette also notched four multi-hit efforts against the Rangers last season, hitting .385 (10-for-26) with three doubles, a triple, two home runs, and five RBI… Has hit safely in 12 of his 15 career games vs. TEX, going 22-for-63 (.349) with 11 extra-base hits and 11 RBI (1.045 OPS).
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is riding a seven-game hitting streak vs. TEX, going 11-for-28 (.393) over that stretch with two doubles, two homers, and five RBI (.670 SLG)…Is a career .304 hitter (21-for-69) against the Rangers, recording five doubles, four homers, and 12 RBI for a .919 OPS.
STARTING PITCHER – Kevin Gausman, RHP #34
TODAY’S GAME:
Making his 15th start of the season and his 8th on the road…Took a no-decision his last time out, on 6/11 vs. MIN, giving up 6 runs on 7 hits and 4 walks over 4.2 innings with 4 strikeouts. His 117 strikeouts are the most ever by a Blue Jay in their first 14 outings of a season (2nd: Roger Clemens – 105 in 1997), and are the most in the AL in 2023 (2nd: Shohei Ohtani – 105K). Owns a 2.77 FIP since the start of the 2020 season, the 2nd-best mark among qualified hurlers (1st: Corbin Burnes – 2.73).
2023 HIGHLIGHTS:
Pitched 7.0 frames of one-run ball on 6/6 vs. HOU, scattering 4 hits with no walks and a career-high-tying 13 strikeouts (also: 13K on 4/29/23 vs. SEA)…Became the 4th player (8th time) in franchise history to punch out at least 13 batters without any walks in a single game (last: José Berríos on 7/12/22 vs. PHI). Tossed 6.2 frames of shutout ball on 6/1 vs. MIL, scattering 5 hits and a pair of walks with 11 strikeouts…Was his 5th start with double-digit punchouts this year. Took a no-decision on 5/21 vs. BAL, tossing 8.0 frames of two-run ball on a season-high 115 pitches (6H, 2BB, 4K)…Matched his longest outing of the year (8.0IP on 4/12 vs. DET). Gave up 3R/2ER runs on 5/16 vs. NYY, surrendering 5 hits and 2 walks over 7.0 innings with 10 strikeouts on 102 pitches (63 strikes)…Marked his 7th quality start of the year, and his 4th with double-digit punchouts. Tossed 6.0 shutout innings on 5/10 at PHI, giving up 3 hits with no walks and 9 strikeouts…Was his 6th quality start of the year, and his 5th outing with no earned runs. Tossed 7.0 shutout innings on 4/29 vs. SEA, giving up 5 hits with a walk and a career-high 13 strikeouts…Threw a season-high 108 pitches (74 strikes) while inducing a career-high 28 swing-and-misses…Got 20 whiffs on his splitter alone, the most on a single pitch in the Majors this season, and the most on a splitter in the pitch-tracking era (since 2008). Took a no-decision on 4/12 vs. DET, giving up 3 runs on 5 hits over a season-high 8.0 innings with no walks and 11 strikeouts, his most as a Blue Jay…Surrendered a solo home run to Nick Maton with one out in the 4th inning, ending his streak of 15.1 innings without allowing an earned run, the longest stretch to begin a season in franchise history (2nd: Matt Shoemaker – 14.0 IP in 2019).
TEXAS RANGERS NOTES:
WINS AND LOSSES: Texas dropped the series finale against the Angels last night, 5-3, as team now owns a 1-3 record to open this 7-G, 7-day homestand against LAA (1-3) and TOR (3 G)…last night’s loss makes it consecutive series losses for TEX (also 1-2 at TB, 6/9-11)…it is the 2nd time this season that the Rangers have dropped 2 series in a row (also 1-2 vs. BAL, 4/3-5 and 1-2 at CHC, 4/7-9)…Rangers have dropped 6 of 8 G (beg. 6/7), but are still 7-6 in June and have won 9 of 16, 13 of 21, 16 of 25, 19 of 30, and 24 of last 37 games…TEX has an MLB-best 28-15 (.651) record in last 43 G beg. 4/28, outscoring its opponents 262-173 (+89) over that span…TEX is 34-20 in last 54 G and 38-22 last 60 G beg. 4/9.
- At 42-26 (.618), TEX owns the 3rd-best record in the A.L., 4th in MLB (TB 50-22, .690; BAL 43-25, .632, ATL 43-26, .623)…club’s 42 wins rank 4th in MLB (50-TB, 43-ATL/BAL).
- The 42-26 start is the 2nd-best 68-G start to a season in WSH/TEX franchise history (see chart below), just 6th time in club history to have at least 40 wins at this point in a campaign.
- TEX is 16 G above .500, 4 shy of season high point of 20- over after win 6/6 vs. STL (40-20)…it was team’s most games above .500 since end of 2016 (95-67) and the earliest date/ fewest games (6/6 and 60 G) ever to reach that mark.
SERIES STUFF: TEX has now lost their last 2 series (1-3 vs. LAA, 6/12-15 and 1-2 at TB, 6/9-11)…it is the 2nd time this season that the Rangers have dropped 2 series in a row (also 1-2 vs. BAL, 4/3-5 and 1-2 at CHC, 4/7-9)…2-straight series losses come on the heels of 6-consecutive series victories from 5/19-6/7 (longest span for team since club-record 10-straight series victories from 5/20-6/20/16)…it also ended a span in which TEX had won a franchise record 6 straight road series.
- The Rangers are 15-6-1 overall in series this year, going 7-3-1 at home and 8-3-0 on the road…team is now 11-3-1 in last 15 series and 14-4-1 in last 19…TEX has gone 6-2-1 in last 9 series at GLF…club has yet to lose 3-consecutive series this season.
- The Rangers have gone 12-10 in series openers this season, including a 6-5 mark here in Arlington.
BEST 34-G TEX HOME RECORDS
W-L YEAR(S)
25-9 1996
24-10 2016
23-11 2004, 2019, 2019
22-12 1981, 1998, 2023
BEST 35-G TEX HOME RECORDS
W-L YEAR(S)
26-9 1996
25-10 2016
24-11 2004, 2010, 2019
23-12 1981
AT HOME: TEX is 22-12 (.647) at home, 3rd-best home record in MLB (TB .816, 31-7; LAD .667, 22-11)…club is 1-4 in last 5 G at home, but has still won 9 of 13, 10 of 15, 14 of 21, and 19 of last 29 at GLF beg. 4/5…TEX is 108-118 all-time record at GLF (2020-23), 28-19 last 47 G here beg. 9/11/22.
- Texas leads MLB with 6.50 R/G at home in 2023, and 221 R are 2nd to TB (222), as Rays have played 4 more home games…club’s 55 HR at home in 2023 are 3rd-most in MLB (62-TB, 61-NYY).
VS. TORONTO: The Rangers tonight start the 1st of 2 series against TOR in ’23 (6/16-18 vs. TOR and 9/11-13 at TOR)… team finished 2-4 against the Blue Jays in 2022, and have lost 7 of their last 9 G dating back to 7/16/21…TEX has not won a season series against TOR since 2012 (6-3)…TEX has gone 7-11 vs. TOR since the start of ’19, going 5-4 at home and 2-7 on the road…also 13-16 vs. Jays since 5/28/17.
- Toronto leads all-time series, 226-216, though Texas holds a 127-98 advantage here in Arlington.
QUICK TRIGGER: Texas manager Bruce Bochy, pitching coach Mike Maddux, and second baseman Marcus Semien were all ejected from last night’s game by first base umpire Ramón De Jesús in the top of the 8th inning…it marked the 1st time that the Rangers have had multiple players/staff ejected from the same game since 7/25/21 at HOU (Brock Holt, Chris Woodward, Tim Timmons)…TEX’s only previous ejection this season was when Bruce Bochy was ejected on 4/15 at HOU (B7th by Erich Bacchus).
- Bochy has now been ejected 79 times in his managerial career…Semien’s ejection was just the 2nd of his 11-year Major League career (also 6/1/19 vs. HOU w/ OAK, Alan Porter), and Maddux had been ejected just one other time before yesterday (also 5/10/14 vs. BOS, Vic Carapazza).
STREAK SNAPPED: Nathan Eovaldi shouldered the loss last night despite turning in his team-leading 9th quality start of the season (7.0 IP, 5 H, 3 R-ER, 2 BB, 9 SO, 2 HR, 1 HBP, 105 pitches/67 strikes)…the loss snapped his streak of wins in 8-straight decisions (beg. 4/18), which finishes T6th-longest winning streak in club history and the longest by a Ranger since Martín Pérez from 5/10-7/29/22 (9-0).
CATCHING AS CATCH CAN: With an RBI single in the 3rd inning last night, Jonah Heim now has 47 RBI this season, 3rd-most among Rangers behind Adolis García (55) and Marcus Semien (53)…he is 1 RBI shy of matching his career high (48 in 2022), and his 47 RBI are already T5th-most ever by a Texas catcher before the All-Star break…the last Rangers backstop to drive in so many runs before the break? Iván Rodríguez in 2000 (80).
- Heim, 2nd place among A.L. catchers on the 1st All-Star Ballot revealed 6/12 with 320,028 votes (BAL’s Rutschman had 460,496), also ranks 3rd in MLB with a 3.54 catcher ERA.
IF I PLAY, WE SCORE: Adolis García notched a single and run-scoring double in his first 2 at-bats yesterday… it marked García’s 375th career game as a Ranger, and his 246 RBI since debuting with the club in 2020 are the 8th-most ever by a player in his first 375 G with the WSH/TEX franchise: 316-Rafael Palmeiro, 312-Álex Rodríguez, 281-Josh Hamilton, 262-Adrián Beltré, 261-Mark Teixeira, 257-Will Clark, 251-Juan González, 246-García.
SPEAKING OF SCORING…: The Rangers have scored an MLB-leading 418 runs in 2023, which ranks 2nd in WSH/TEX franchise record for most runs scored through the first 68 G of a campaign (419 R in 1998)…Texas has outscored its opponents 418-275 (+143), good for the highest run differential in the Majors (TB is 2nd at +142)…the 2023 Rangers are just the 4th team in the Expansion Era (beg. 1961) to boast a run differential of +143-or-higher over its first 68 G of a season.
PEAGLE SIGNAL ACTIVATED: The Rangers are set to wear their 2023 City Connect uniforms tonight for the 6th time in ’23, threads in which they own a 4-1 record…after losing on the 1st day that the Peagle was unveiled (4/21 vs. OAK), TEX is riding a 4-game winning streak while donning the cream top and pitch blue pants.
SHORTS: TEX went 9-49 (.184) with runners in scoring position during the series vs. LAA…Adolis García saw a season-high 10 pitches in his 1st-inning at-bat last night vs. Shohei Ohtani (single)…Corey Seager was intentionally walked in the 7th inn., 1st TEX batter to have multiple IBB’s in ’23 (2).
TONIGHT’S STARTING PITCHER – #54 Martín Pérez, LHP
(6-2, 4.67)
TONIGHT: The 32-year-old southpaw is slated to make his 14th start of the season in tonight’s series opener vs. Toronto…has allowed 14 R-13 ER over his last 3 starts (15.0 IP) to spike his season ERA from 3.83 to 4.67, 4th-highest among A.L. qualifiers…his 6 wins this season are still T2nd-most among Rangers (9-Eovaldi) and rank T11th in A.L…will be working on regular 4 days’ rest after taking his 1st loss since 4/8 at CHC (L, 5.0 IP, 3 R-2 ER) in Texas’ 7-3 defeat on Sun. at TB (see ‘Last Start’)…opponents are batting .302/.354/.465/.820 (87-288) in ‘23, highest opp. BA and 3rd-highest opp. OPS among A.L. qualifiers…has already allowed team-high 11 HR (1.39 HR/9) this season after permitting just 11 HR (0.50 HR/9) in all of 2022…made 2 starts for Venezuela in the 2023 World Baseball Classic, posting no record and a 9.82 ERA (4 ER/3.2 IP)…after returning to the Rangers on a one-year free agent deal for 2022, he elected to stay with Texas in 2023 on a one-year deal after accepting the club’s qualifying offer in November… spent the first 11 seasons of his professional career with the Rangers (2008-18), and has been with the organization for 12 of his 15 years as a pro…left the club for 3 years for brief stints with Minnesota (2019) and Boston (2020-21)…since 2016, his first full campaign after returning from ‘Tommy John’ surgery, has the 2nd-most starts (188) and 2nd-most innings pitched (1078.0) of any pitcher in the American League…saw two seasons cut short in 2014-15 following ‘Tommy John’ ligament reconstruction surgery on his left elbow on 5/19/14…Texas has gone 9-4 in his 13 starts this season.
LAST START: Suffered his 1st loss since 4/8 at CHC (L, 5.0 IP, 3 R-2 ER) in Texas’ 7-3 defeat on Sun. at TB (L, 3.1 IP, 10 H, 7 R-ER, 3 BB, 2 SO, 1 HR, 75 pitches/45 strikes)…surrendered season highs in hits (10) and runs (7-tied) in his shortest outing of 2023…5 of 10 hits allowed had exit velocities over 95.0+ mph (Statcast)…allowed multiple runs in the 1st (2), 2nd (2), and 4th (3) innings…last 4 batters faced all reached base, including a 3-run HR by Wander Franco that extended Tampa’s lead to 7-3 in the 4th…did not face a single left-handed batter (21 total batters faced).
FOREVER RANGER: Has a 61-59 record with a 4.30 ERA over 186 games/173 starts in his Rangers career, ranking among club’s all-time leaders in starts (7th), innings (8th, 1025.2), wins (10th), and strikeouts (12th, 682)…his 61 wins are the 3rd-most ever by a Texas left-hander, trailing only Kenny Rogers (133) and Derek Holland (62)…Pérez and Rogers (1909.0 IP) are the only LHP in TEX history to log 1000.0+ IP with the club.
- Since returning to Texas prior to the start of the 2022 campaign, Pérez has gone 18-10, 3.36 ERA (100 ER/267.2 IP) in 45 G/GS…ranks among qualified A.L. pitchers over that span in innings (4th), quality starts (T4th, 28), ground ball pct. (5th, 48.6%), starts (T5th), HR/9 (6th, 0.74), and wins (T7th).
VS. TORONTO / A.L. EAST: Pérez owns a career 3-3 record and 3.10 ERA (17 ER/49.1 IP) in 10 games/9 starts vs. Toronto…last faced the Jays here in Arlington on 9/11/22 (W, 6.0 IP, 6 H, 1 R-ER, 2 BB, 7 SO), earning the win as part of a 4-1 Texas victory…held Toronto scoreless thru 5 frames in that outing before Teoscar Hernández’s RBI double in the 6th inning…Pérez has gone 5-2, 2.96 (15 ER/45.2 IP) in 8 G/GS vs. A.L. East clubs since the start of 2022, posting quality starts in 6 of those 8 outings.
AT HOME / GLOBE LIFE FIELD: Has seen far better results in his 4 starts at home this season (3-0, 1.40 ERA) than his 9 starts on the road (3-2, 6.50 ERA)… has quality starts in 3 straight at home…has not surrendered a home run in his last 9 starts/54.2 IP at Globe Life Field (last Ryan McKenna on 8/3/22 vs. BAL)… over his last 18 starts in Arlington (beg. 4/28/22), has gone 8-2 with a 2.29 ERA (28 ER/110.0 IP) with 14 quality starts…is 8-5, 2.55 (35 ER/123.2 IP) in 21 career games/starts at Globe Life Field, and ranks among the all-time leaders at this facility (incl. 2020 postseason) in strikeouts (2nd, 114), wins (T2nd, 8), and starts (T2nd, 21)…opponents have batted .242/.313/.328/.641 (113-467) with just 5 HR against Pérez in his career here at GLF.
HOW SUPPORTIVE: Has received an average of 9.08 runs of support-per-9.0 innings this season, the highest qualified mark in MLB…rotation-mate Nathan Eovaldi ranks 3rd in the category (7.11)…over a full season, a 9.08 RSA would signify the highest mark for any qualified MLB hurler since the stat was tracked in 1974…Derek Holland currently owns the highest full-season qualified RSA by a Ranger, boasting a 7.64 mark in 2011.
- TEX has backed up Pérez with 5+ R of support in 8 of his 13 starts this season, including double-digit runs of support twice (14 RS on 4/30, 11 RS on 5/7).
2023: Opponents have batted .302/.354/.465/.820 (87-288) with 24 extra-base hits (11 HR, 3B, 12 2B), incl. opp. BA’s of .341 (14-41) vs. LHB and .296 (73-247) vs. RHB…3.59 pitches per batter faced is lowest mark in A.L./2nd-lowest among ML qualifiers (3.54-MIA’s Sandy Alcantara)…opp. BA by time thru the order: 1st (.252, 26-103), 2nd (.318, 34-107), 3rd (.355, 27-76), 4th (0-2)…Jonah Heim has caught all 13 of Pérez’s starts…in win 5/24 at PIT, recorded season-high 15 ground balls, 2 of which resulted in GIDP’s…held Buccos scoreless over final 5.0 frames…tossed season-high 104 pitches in ultra-quality start on 5/19 vs. COL (7.0 IP, 7 H, 2 R-ER, 0 BB, 7 SO).z
