The Toronto Blue Jays know who they’ll be facing on the mound for the first two games of their ALDS against the Texas Rangers. Price delivered a strong start for the Tampa Bay Rays when they beat Texas in the 2013 AL Wild Card Game in Arlington, so seeing him rise to the occasion wouldn’t be a surprise.
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Hamels is of course the Rangers’ ace, but since he worked a 108-pitch complete game against the Angels on Sunday, the team is opting not to start him on short rest on Thursday in Game 1.
“His best starts have been against the Blue Jays” said shortstop Elvis Andrus. The sense was that the final spot in the rotation would come down to Gallardo or Martin Perez, with Gallardo having an edge because the Blue Jays have hit lefties better than righthanders this season.
The Texas Rangers finished the regular season with a 88-74 record and have split their last 10 games.
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Hamels is 7-1 in 12 starts since Texas acquired him from Philadelphia in late July. The Blue Jays can simply drop six or more runs at the drop of a hat, and they’ve done just that 10 times since the beginning of September. Price is 3-4 with a 5.15 ERA and 59 strikeouts in his career against the Rangers. He spent the first eight years of his career in Milwaukee before being traded to Texas in the offseason. In addition, Gallardo has pitched twice against Toronto this year and not given up a run in 13.2 IP, while holding the Jays hitters to a.136/.224/.136 line. By no means is his stuff overpowering, but the crafty vet uses a high pitching IQ and sheer determination to pitch well and this postseason should be no different. The big California native was stellar in both the ’10 and ’11 postseasons.
