The Toronto Blue Jays are looking to make up for the runs they did not score when they were no-hit by the Houston Astros on Monday as they conclude their series by facing starting pitcher, Cristian Javier on Wednesday.
Toronto Blue Jays vs. Houston Astros (-148, 8.5)
Javier had a strong first start of the season with six shut-out innings against the New York Yankees, but even with that showing, has a 5.77 ERA across his past 18 starts, dating back to June 21, 2023.
In this span, Javier is allowing over 4.5 walks and 1.6 home runs per nine innings, allowing at least three runs in 14 of his last 18 starts — causing damage that even Major League Baseball’s sixth-best bullpen in ERA last season can’t salvage.
Countering on the mound for the Blue Jays is Chris Bassitt, who started the 2024 season by allowing five runs, four of which were earned, against the Tampa Bay Rays on March 29 and continues the road struggles that he has had since joining the Blue Jays prior to the start of the 2023 season.
In 17 road starts with the Blue Jays, Bassitt has a 4.64 ERA with 1.9 home runs per nine innings allowed. This becomes an even bigger issue with a Blue Jays bullpen that ranked eighth in ERA last season dealing with two of their pitchers used most frequently in big sports, Erik Swanson and Jordan Romano, both currently on the injured list.
The Blue Jays offense will look to pick up the slack as the team ranked 10th in the league in runs per game on the road last season with nearly 4.9 runs per game last season while ranking fifth in road on-base plus slugging (OPS).
With the Astros ranking fifth in baseball in scoring last season with nearly 5.1 runs per game, Wednesday’s series finally sets up to provide plenty of hits and scoring.
The Play: Blue Jays vs. Astros Over 8.5
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