Toronto @ New York preview

Last Meeting ( Aug 3, 2010 ) Toronto 8, NY Yankees 2

The Toronto Blue Jays brought the big bats to Yankee Stadium this week.

The way Shaun Marcum has been pitching lately, they may not need them Wednesday.

Marcum looks to extend his personal winning streak to four games as the Blue Jays go for a rare road sweep at Yankee Stadium. The Bronx Bombers counter with towering right-hander Phil Hughes as they aim to end a three-game losing streak.

Toronto has the highest homers-per-game average in the history of the new Yankee Stadium, and has put its power on display over the first two games of the three-game set. The Jays belted a pair of home runs in the series-opening 8-6 win Monday night, and added four long balls in an 8-2 rout on Tuesday.

Jose Bautista had the final round-tripper of the night, his major league-leading 33nd of the campaign. No player is within six home runs of Bautista, who now has 43 home runs in his past 130 games dating back to last September. Toronto leads the majors with 167 homers, 26 more than runner-up Boston.

The power display might not be necessary with Marcum (10-4) on the mound. The 28-year-old righty has been sensational since coming off the 15-day disabled list in mid-July, surrendering just four runs over his last 17 2/3 innings.

Marcum had his strongest outing of the season five days ago in Cleveland, allowing a run on three hits over seven innings as Toronto beat the Indians 8-1. He added a season-high 10 strikeouts while lowering his ERA to 3.24, the best among Jays starters.

Marcum hasn't fared well against the Yankees in his career, going just 1-3 all-time with a 6.39 ERA – the highest of any American League opponent. He last faced them on Sept. 22, 2007, earning a no-decision after allowing a run on five hits over three innings in a game the Yankees won 12-11 in extra innings.

The Jays are looking for their first sweep in New York since May 2003, when they outscored the Yankees 24-10 en route to a four-game whitewash.

The focus for the Yankees continues to be Alex Rodriguez's pursuit of career home run No. 600. The 35-year-old third baseman has been stuck on 599 for the past 12 games, going just 9-for-46 along the way. He went 0-for-3 in Tuesday's game, dropping his batting average to an uncharacteristically low .264 for the season.

His slump has hurt the Yankees, who have dropped back into second place in the American League East standings for the first time since June 12. New York enters Wednesday one game back of the division-leading Tampa Bay Rays, who have won three straight games to claim the major leagues' best record at 67-39.

Hughes (12-4) will try to stem the tide and equal CC Sabathia for the team lead in victories. The 24-year-old has just two victories over his last six starts, and earned the loss in his last outing after allowing three runs over six innings in a 3-2 defeat at the hands of the Rays.

Hughes is 1-1 lifetime against Toronto with a 4.01 ERA over 42 2/3 innings. He earned a no-decision in their last meeting July 4, surrendering five runs in six innings of a 7-6 Yankees victory.