This is the second game of a three-game series in Toronto between the Blue Jays and visiting San Francisco Giants.
Logan Webb is scheduled to pitch for San Francisco while Eric Lauer is slated to start for Toronto.
Giants at Blue Jays prediction, preview
Logan Webb used to be a solid, very productive, yet kind of boringish pitcher. He must be eating his Wheaties this season because the strikeout rate is a career-high 27.1%. It used to hover in the 20% range. The ERA is 2.84, yet he’s actually experienced some bad luck. The BABIP is .323 and the FIP is lower at 2.52. The swinging strike rate is 11.2% while the chase rate is 31.6%.
Webb has dominated both at home and on the road. He’s been better against righties, but that doesn’t mean he’s been Santa Claus to lefties.
Webb does have two games with over three earned runs allowed: five earned runs in San Diego back in April and six earned runs against the Los Angeles Dodgers before the All-Star break. The rest have been good. Webb has failed to pitch six innings only five times. This will be his first time facing the Blue Jays this season.
Against right-handed pitching, the Blue Jays have struck out at the lowest rate while having the 20th-best ISO. The wOBA is 12th-best in MLB.
Eric Lauer only averages 91.7 mph on the fastball, but the pitch is his highest-rated pitch. He also throws a cutter, his second-best pitch. Lauer does get hit hard, as the average exit velocity is 91.2 mph while the hard hit rate is 44.4%, but the barrel rate is only 7.6% and he’s allowed only six home runs in 55 innings. The ERA is 2.78, but he’s been fortunate with an 83% strand rate and .254 BABIP. The FIP is 3.37.
Lauer has a higher K-BB% against righties, but they have hit five of the six home runs allowed. Lauer has been much better at home, posting a 2.22 FIP and 23.8% K-BB%.
Lauer has not allowed more than three earned runs in any start, but he’s only pitched over five innings once. Most of his starts have ended after four innings.
The Giants have struck out at the fifth-highest rate against left-handed pitching while being 19th in ISO. The wOBA is 28th-best.
As for bullpens, San Francisco has the ninth-lowest FIP while Toronto has the 12th-lowest.
Giants at Blue Jays pick, best bet
I’m not letting the six earned runs allowed to the Dodgers in his last start mess with my mind. I like Webb to continue spinning and confounding hitters while Lauer shouldn’t get blown up.
