Toronto @ Kansas City preview

Last Meeting ( Apr 12, 2013 ) Toronto 8, Kansas City 4

The visiting Toronto Blue Jays will try to win two in a row for the first time this season when they play the Kansas City Royals on Saturday night. The Blue Jays may have suffered a significant blow Friday when shortstop and leadoff hitter Jose Reyes had to be carted off after suffering a left ankle injury while stealing second base in the sixth inning. Reyes, a four-time All Star and 2011 National League batting champion who was traded from the Miami Marlins in a 12-play deal in the offseason, was hitting a team-high .395.

The Royals had their four-game winning streak snapped with Friday’s loss. The eight runs allowed matched their highest total this season. Alex Gordon has hit safely in nine straight games to put his average at .395, a stark contrast to last season’s 0-for-18 start. The Royals are hoping third baseman Mike Moustakas finds his stroke. The third-year player is hitting .176 with no home runs and one RBI in 34 at-bats.

TV: 7:10 p.m. ET, MLB Network, SNET (Toronto), Fox Sports Kansas City

PITCHING MATCHUP: Blue Jays RH R.A. Dickey (0-2, 8.44 ERA) vs. Royals RH James Shields (1-1, 3.75)

Dickey hasn’t looked anything like last season's National League Cy Young Award winner. He dropped his debut with the Blue Jays on April 2, giving up four hits and three earned runs in six innings of a 4-1 loss to the Cleveland Indians. He took a step back in his second start Sunday, surrendering seven earned runs and 10 hits in a 13-0 rout by the Boston Red Sox. The one home run and five earned runs he allowed in the first inning against Boston matched his entire first-inning season totals from 2012, when he was with the New York Mets. The 38-year-old knuckleballer is 1-3 with a 5.52 ERA in his career against the Royals.

Shields was another high-profile hurler who changed teams in the offseason. Shields came over from the Tampa Bay Rays, where he finished third in the American League Cy Young voting in 2011. He has allowed 18 hits in his first 12 innings with the Royals but has limited the opposition to five earned runs. He pitched better in his season-opening loss to the Chicago White Sox than his win Sunday against the Philadelphia Phillies. He allowed one run on a homer by Tyler Flowers in his debut with Kansas City but didn’t receive any run support in the 1-0 loss. He gave up four runs and 10 hits in his second outing and was supported with eight runs while in the game as the Royals went on to beat the Phillies 9-8.

WALK-OFFS

1. Five of the 12 hits Toronto 1B Adam Lind has off Shields in his career have gone for home runs.

2. Former Blue Jays RHP Alex Burnett, who was designated for assignment Wednesday, was claimed off waivers Friday by the Baltimore Orioles.

3. With the Royals and Washington Nationals losing Friday night, the Colorado Rockies are the only unbeaten team at home this season.

PREDICTION: Royals 5, Blue Jays 3