Oakland @ Toronto preview
Rogers Centre
Last Meeting ( Apr 30, 2010 ) Oakland 2, Toronto 10
Having regained their power stroke, the Toronto Blue Jays look to make it three straight wins against the Oakland Athletics at the Rogers Centre on Saturday afternoon.
The Blue Jays cracked four home runs on Thursday - including three by catcher John Buck - and hit three more on Friday night on the way to back-to-back victories to open the four game series.
While Vernon Wells belted his team-leading eighth homer in Friday's 10-2 win, it was a pair from Alex Gonzalez that turned heads.
Known more for his defensive prowess, Gonzalez hit his sixth and seventh homers of the season against the Athletics Friday. Gonzalez had just eight homers last year and his career high is 23 round-trippers in 2004.
Wells hit the 200th of his career on Friday. The Blue Jays currently lead the American League with 35 home runs.
The Athletics were certainly the right elixir for the previously slumping Blue Jays. Toronto snapped a five-game losing streak on Thursday against the A's, a team they've now beaten 13 of the last 16 times. The Athletics have lost six straight on the road.
While Toronto is playing long ball, the Athletics are struggling and they got even more bad news before Friday's game.
Oakland placed catcher Kurt Suzuki on the disabled list with an oblique strain. Suzuki, who already has missed six straight games with the injury, has become the team's best hitter and leads the Athletics with four home runs. He joins regulars Coco Crisp, Mark Ellis and Travis Buck on the disabled list.
Pitcher Justin Duchscherer, another promising Athletics starter, is scheduled to see a specialist after leaving Thursday night's game with soreness in his left hip and also seems headed for the DL. A couple of years ago Duchscherer had surgery on his right hip.
The wounded A's will send Gio Gonzalez to the mound on Saturday. Gonzalez (2-1) defeated the Cleveland Indians, 11-0, in his last start and is now one of the top arms of a beleaguered starting rotation that just a week ago led the majors in the ERA. Since then, Oakland has surrendered 34 runs in the past four games and put two pitchers on the disabled list.
Oakland's best pitcher, closer Andrew Bailey, has not been involved in a save situation in nearly two weeks.
The Blue Jays will counter with Dana Eveland (2-0). After three straight solid outings to start the season, Eveland was hammered by the Boston Red Sox in his last start.