AL Wild Card Game Thread: Baltimore Orioles @ Toronto Blue Jays 10/4

Here we go ladies and gentleman, baseball is back and the postseason has begun. The New York Yankees did not qualify for the postseason unfortunately in 2016 but three teams from their AL East Division did including both of tonight’s participants in the American League Wild Card Game, the Baltimore Orioles and the Toronto Blue Jays. In the start tonight the Orioles will send Chris Tillman to the mound to face off with Marcus Stroman for the Blue Jays. Not that you need a reminder by now but this is a one-game playoff game that decides it all, win or go home. The game will take place at 8:05 pm ET inside the Rogers Centre and can be seen nationally on TBS.

I don’t have a horse in this race so for the first time in 162 games I’m simply going to just sit back and enjoy baseball. You know, the way it should be done. Good luck to both team’s tonight and may the better team, manager, pitching and offense win. Enjoy.

Predicting Tonight’s AL Wild Card Winner

Okay ladies and gentleman. We’ve previewed the game and we know what each offense has done against the other’s starting pitcher for the night so now all that’s left is to pick a winner. Truth be told I think home field advantage is a pretty minimal advantage in Major League Baseball in most cases but I think the Toronto faithful proved last postseason that they can be the key factor in a game. In short, they can get loud and that has to get inside the head of the pitching and for that reason I have the Toronto Blue Jays winning this game tonight.

I can see this turning into an offensive explosion for both team’s due to the big stage and the pressure with the Blue Jays winning the game 6-2. Buck Showalter won’t be happy but I have a feeling millions of Yankees fans will be when they see him drop his head and walk into the dugout after the loss. Just a hunch. I guess you’ll have to tune in here in a couple of hours to see if I’m right.

Full Disclaimer: I’m hardly ever right so don’t bet the bank on it. 

The Blue Jays Pitching vs. the Orioles Hitting

Earlier today we looked at what the mighty Toronto Blue Jays offense has done in their careers against tonight’s Baltimore starter Chris Tillman so it’s only fair that we look at what the likes of Manny Machado, Chris Davis and Matt Wieters have done in their careers against tonight’s Blue Jays starter Marcus Stroman. There’s a lot on the line tonight including the right to fight another day in another series in another city as the winner tonight moves on to face the AL West Champion Texas Rangers in the ALDS. No pressure Stroman but here is what you have done against the Orioles offense in your career. After seeing each other over 20 times a season there will be no secrets tonight inside the Rogers Centre so good luck to all involved. Enjoy.

All photos and stats courtesy of ESPN.com 

AL Wild Card Game Preview: Baltimore Orioles @ Toronto Blue Jays 10/4

The Baltimore Orioles and the Toronto Blue Jays are preparing for their AL Wild Card showdown tonight inside Toronto’s Rogers Centre in what should be another exciting matchup between the two clubs. These two teams are both in the American League East Division meaning that they have seen each other plenty over the course of the 2016 season. There will be little in the way of surprises tonight in Toronto which could make for a strategical game called by both managers like we haven’t seen before. The game will live and die by the pitching though like it always has in the history of Major League Baseball and tonight’s pitching matchup should not disappoint as the Baltimore Orioles send Chris Tillman to the mound to square off with the Blue Jays starter Marcus Stroman. 

Here we go.

Tillman will start the AL Wild Card Game for the Orioles with Baltimore's season on the line. Tillman has faced the Blue Jays four times this season already and has posted a 1-0 record with a 3.63 ERA. 

Stroman is easily the Blue Jays ace and with the season on the line he is the only option for Toronto to start this game tonight despite his struggles against Baltimore this season. Stroman has also made four starts against the Orioles this season and has posted a 1-2 record with a 7.04 ERA in that span, ouch. 

The game will be played at 8:05 pm ET inside the Rogers Centre and can be seen nationally on TBS. While it’s a shame that the New York Yankees can’t be in it this season the playoffs should still be fun and entertaining for all and that all begins tonight. Enjoy the game everyone. 

The Orioles Pitching vs. the Blue Jays Hitting

The American League Wild Card Game begins tonight inside the Rogers Centre between the Baltimore Orioles and the Toronto Blue Jays. Try as they might but the New York Yankees could not player spoiler against Buck Showalter’s fighting Orioles and tonight they play in a do-or-die game with Toronto with the winning team punching their ticket to the ALDS and a trip to Arlington Texas. This game, like all playoff games, is going to come down to the pitching so I wanted to take a bit this morning to look at what Chris Tillman, tonight’s starter for the Orioles, has done against the mighty Blue Jays offense during his career.

All photos and stats courtesy of ESPN.com. 

2016 MLB Playoffs Schedule for 10/4/16

Here we go ladies and gentleman, the beginning of the 2016 MLB playoffs. I know this is a Yankees-centric blog but we will be watching these playoffs very closely and trying to expand our outreach a bit over the next month or so. If you see a little more non-Yankees related content than normal don’t fret, it will return. There just isn’t much going on right now with the Yankees not in it and generally most Yankees fans still watch the postseason anyway. Don’t worry though, once the postseason is over we will go back to all Yankees all the time.

With that said there is just one game on the docket for tonight, the AL Wild Card Game between the Baltimore Orioles and the Toronto Blue Jays. The game will begin at 8:05 pm ET inside Rogers Centre and can be seen on TBA. Check it out and enjoy.

Baltimore Orioles @ Toronto Blue Jays – 8:05 pm ET on TBS inside the Rogers Centre.

This Day In New York Yankees History 10/4:#TooManyDamnHRs

The 2009 New York Yankees squad could beat you just about any way they wanted. They had great defense, timely hitting, pitching, and the power to simply outslug you. The power was on full display on this day in 2009 on the last day of the season when Alex Rodriguez hit a three run home run to cap off a ten run sixth inning. Alex’s home run was the teams 243rd of the season, a new Yankees franchise record. A Rod went deep later in the inning as well with the bases loaded to finish the season with exactly 30 home runs and 100 RBI.


Also less notable marks for this day include Dave Righetti extending his major league record saves total for one season to 46 in a doubleheader sweep of the Red Sox in 1986, Hank Bauer extended his World Series hitting streak to 17 games on this day in 1958, and Mickey Mantle became only the fourth Yankee to ever hit a World Series grand slam on this day in 1953.