Series Preview: Red Sox at Blue Jays (4/17-4/19)
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by user Tylersalt
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As a fan, I absolutely loathe when my Boston Red Sox have to play the Toronto Blue Jays, as they do for five games out of their next eight. The Boston players bring their passports up to the Rogers Centre for a three-game set this week, their first meeting of the year with the team from the Great White North. Last season, the Jays dominated the Red Sox, winning 12 of the 19 games they played. The Red Sox hope to get off on the right foot this year. This is a bad time for the Red Sox to come to town if you're a Jays fan, because the Sox are clicking on all cylinders and the Toronto clubhouse seems more like an emergency room right now. Closer B.J. Ryan, third baseman Troy Glaus, and outfielder Reed Johnson are all on the disabled list. Let's take a look at the three games in the series.
Game 1 (Boston 1, Toronto 2)
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In the first game of the series, Dice-K Mania spreads to Canada as Daisuke Matsuzaka takes the mound against young lefty Gustavo Chacin. Matsuzaka really hasn't had a bad start yet -- his first start against Kansas City was dominant, and he just ran into the power-mower that was Felix Hernandez a few days ago. Matsuzaka-san's success against Toronto will begin and end with his ability to handle Vernon Wells, who seemed to win entire games against Boston single-handedly last season. Said Matsuzaka (via MLB.com), ""When he came to Japan, I knew he was a good hitter, a slugger. Most home run hitters have spots where you can strike them out. Vernon Wells can make contact with any pitch. He's not just a home run hitter."
Except for one miserable start, Chacin has had good success against Boston over the past two seasons. The only two Sox regulars to have any kind of success off of the bespectacled lefty are David Ortiz and Coco Crisp -- this could represent Crisp's best chance to get off the schneid to date. Chacin has never faced right fielder J.D. Drew, the most consistent hitter for Boston so far, and Manny Ramirez is a mere 2-11 with 3 BB's against him. Chacin beat the Red Sox four times last season, the beneficiary of almost 9 runs per game of support.
Game 2
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In game two, the steady veteran Tim Wakefield takes on former Boston pitcher Tomo Ohka. Wakefield can tend to have trouble in domes without the wind to help the knuckleball flutter, so we'll see how he manages. He pitched brilliantly in his last start, allowing only 1 run on 5 hits over 7 in a win against the Angels, and really pitched well in his first start, a 2-1 loss to Texas. Wake missed significant time with a rib injury last season, and his reliability was sorely missed in the Red Sox clubhouse.
Interestingly, for as long as Ohka has been around, he has never faced Boston backup catcher Doug Mirabelli, who will be in the game to catch Tim Wakefield. Wily Mo Pena might see some time against Ohka, as he is 3-12 with 2 HR's against him lifetime, and has seen him more than any other current Boston player other than Mike Lowell, who faced him quite often while he was with Florida and Ohka played for the Montreal Expos. Ohka did not pitch well in either of his starts so far this season, giving up at least four runs in both starts in a no-decision and a loss to Tampa Bay and Detroit respectively. He comes in facing an extremely well-hitting team, as the Red Sox just outscored the Angels 25-3 over three games.
Game 3
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This will probably be the Jays' best shot to pick up a game, as Julian Tavarez trots out to meet perennial Cy Young contender Roy Halladay. Tavarez was supposed to start the Patriots' Day game in Boston, but the rain pushed the start back a couple days -- this would have been Curt Schilling's spot to pitch otherwise, who instead will pitch against the New York Yankees on Friday. Tavarez pitched quite well down the stretch last season in an emergency starter role when the Boston staff was decimated by injury and illness, but did not show that form in his only start of the year so far, a loss to Texas. The Sox hope to get some effective pitching out of him before Jon Lester returns and relegates Tavarez back to a long/middle-relief role.
Halladay was having a remarkable first half last season which went largely unnoticed due to the successes of Johan Santana and Francisco Liriano in Minnesota, and to the fact that Roy plays in Canada. He missed significant time in the second half, ending his hopes for what could have been a second Cy Young award. Halladay's strikeout rate has dropped over the past few years (it is a mortal 5.08 so far this season), which could be a sign of statistical decline over the next few years, but he isn't showing any ill effects so far this year, winning two of his three starts this year, beating Tampa once and Detroit once, while getting a no-decision against Detroit on the road. In that win against Detroit in Toronto last week, he threw a 10-inning complete game, allowing only one run on a solo homer.
