Blue Jays Hold Edge Over Tigers Despite Rotation Injuries on Both Sides

If any team in baseball has somewhat of an inclination as to what the Toronto Blue Jays have been dealing with, it is the Detroit Tigers. Both ballclubs have fallen victim to the injured list, specifically the starting rotation, but if it were a contest, the Jays would still outnumber them.

Luckily, this series is coming at a decent time simply because the Blue Jays recently welcomed back Trey Yesavage with open arms, and Kevin Gausman's next start is here, while the Tigers' best arm available right now, Framber Valdez, just pitched on Wednesday.

The one hiccup that could give Detroit an edge would come just in time for Saturday's game, as Casey Mize will be eligible to come off the IL. For the Blue Jays, they still don't know who is starting, so that matchup remains nameless at this point for both teams.

Regardless if Mize can pitch or not, this series should be and needs to be a W for Toronto.

Friday and Sunday's Matchups in Detroit

On paper, both of these battles should easily be won by the Blue Jays. The problem that arises is that the Jays have really struggled on the road, while 12 of the Tigers 19 wins have come at Comerica Park.

Something to keep in mind.

Fri, May 15 • 6:45 PM EDT: Trey Yesavage vs. Ty Madden

This one will be a matchup of the younger arms as Madden may have made his debut in 2024, but has only pitched in eight combined games, two of which are this season. On top of that, this is only his first start of the year, and his second ever.

Madden, however, has done well as he has tallied up 12 strikeouts in 11 innings while holding opponents to a .154 batting average. Yesavage, on the other hand, has 15 strikeouts in 13 innings while recording a 0.68 ERA.

Sun, May 17 • 1:40 PM EDT: Kevin Gausman vs. Jack Flaherty

Gausman and Flaherty are both neck and neck in the strikeout department, but the ERAs between the two are vastly different, as Gausman is at 3.86 while Flaherty is creeping up on 5.75. Gausman has had a rough couple of outings lately, but he will not let that continue.

The Blue Jays left Toronto on a high note as Daulton Varsho hit a walk-off grand slam in an extra inning showdown against the top of the division. But the team is in a hole that they have to dig out of one game at a time.

That starts against the Tigers, who are bleeding as badly as the Blue Jays, before the team has to travel to Yankee Stadium immediately following. The road woes have to end here, and that all starts with Yesavage on Friday.

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