Wild Card Game: Baltimore (Tillman) @ Toronto (Stroman) | Tuesday, October 4 | 8PM EST

BitsAndGlory · Post #61 » by **BitsAndGlory** » Mon Oct 3, 2016 3:47 pm

After seeing how Baltimore is against lefties, I'm in favor of Liriano + Stroman out of the pen.

And hopefully our offense scores more than 1-3 runs.

Shimso · Post #62 » by **Shimso** » Mon Oct 3, 2016 3:49 pm

Santoki wrote:
albinorap wrote:$300 for two tickets section 526. Should I pull the trigger?

No, that's pretty terrible. A friend of mine bought tickets last night for $130 each in the 100s. I'd save my money for the ALDS personally.

Wow. I was checking Stubhub for a while (got my tickets in the 52_'s at their lowest price because I bought it after the loss to Boston) and never saw the 100s nearly at that price except for the Outfield seats which were maybe $130-150 US at their lowest.

I ended up paying about 90US for section 524 and similar seats are now going for about $140 US.

jaymeister15 · Post #63 » by **jaymeister15** » Mon Oct 3, 2016 3:50 pm

Logically it makes sense to have Liriano go, but for some reason I have more faith in Stroman being able to go at least 5 or 6 innings without getting blown up. I just keep picturing Liriano losing the strike zone completely and walking 2 or 3 people followed by a dinger in the 2nd inning or something like that.

That being said, even if Stroman is on, there is always the chance of 4 or 5 groundballs in a row finding holes with him out there.

I don't know, it's a tough call, glad I'm not the one to have to make it. You can make a good argument for having either of them go out there...but obviously if they lose, the decision is going to be second guessed all winter (probably unfairly).

Throwback24 · Post #64 » by **Throwback24** » Mon Oct 3, 2016 3:58 pm

BitsAndGlory wrote:After seeing how Baltimore is against lefties, I'm in favor of Liriano + Stroman out of the pen.

And hopefully our offense scores more than 1-3 runs.

Our offense will put up 6 runs. It's up to the pitcher to keep the Orioles to 3-4.

wazabifuzz · Post #65 » by **wazabifuzz** » Mon Oct 3, 2016 5:03 pm

what about dickey in the pen. He may be able to give you 2 - 3 innings if the jays are up big.

Tigersrule · Post #66 » by **Tigersrule** » Mon Oct 3, 2016 5:19 pm

I think Stroman just hinted that hes gonna be pitching on his snapchat ...he said "Cant wait to pitch"

AreBe · Post #67 » by **AreBe** » Mon Oct 3, 2016 5:28 pm

OK Stro Show for 2 times through the lineup only! Then Liriano, even in the 4th inning. No three times though the lineup with Stroman!

LLJ · Post #68 » by **LLJ** » Mon Oct 3, 2016 5:30 pm

Either guy is fine, really. The other guy will be waiting if there are problems anyway.

Raps in 4 · Post #69 » by **Raps in 4** » Mon Oct 3, 2016 5:30 pm

Baseball execs pick Texas as second most likely team to come out of AL. Really puts into perspective how little a lot of front offices know about the sports they manage.

sharmaraps · Post #70 » by **sharmaraps** » Mon Oct 3, 2016 5:40 pm

LLJ wrote:It would be nice if the offense got hot starting about now. Lord knows we're due for a hot hitting streak.

Watch on YouTube

sharmaraps · Post #71 » by **sharmaraps** » Mon Oct 3, 2016 5:42 pm

wazabifuzz wrote:what about dickey in the pen. He may be able to give you 2 - 3 innings if the jays are up big.

cant do that at all. Dickey can go off for like 3 home runs in a row lol. Especially at the Rogers Centre that's prone to home runs. Also against an offense like Orioles who crush the ball. That would be a big NONO

The_Hater · Post #72 » by **The_Hater** » Mon Oct 3, 2016 6:03 pm

LLJ wrote:Either guy is fine, really. The other guy will be waiting if there are problems anyway.

If the guy who starts gets shelled early, it will probably be to late for the 2nd guy to save the day. Chosing the right starter is the most important aspect of tomorrow's game.

I_Like_Dirt · Post #73 » by **I_Like_Dirt** » Mon Oct 3, 2016 6:04 pm

The_Hater wrote:Maybe. But I'm still going to predict that if we hold the Orioles to zero runs, we will win.

Fair enough, and I don't deny that. My point was that the idea of quibbling over how to keep the Orioles to 0 runs is the lesser consideration here. The Jays pitching staff is far from perfect, but they did allow the fewest runs collectively in the AL this season and even the pen has been reasonable. This is a team that has given up 5 runs or more only 3 times in the past 17 games.

The bats are where the money is being spent, and while the collective numbers haven't been awful, a disproportionate number of their runs have come in massive blowouts where they've run up the score. Stroman hasn't been great lately, but he hasn't been awful, either. In his past 5 starts, the Jays have given him 5 runs of support total, 3 of those in one game they won 3-0. The Jays haven't scored more than 3 runs in a game Stroman started since August (they did it twice in August and won both games), which sort of underlines the type of nosedive we've seen from the bats since the AS break. Figuring out how to shut out teams like the Orioles and Red Sox is great an all, and it might even work as a one-off against the Orioles, because baseball, but it isn't realistic longer term, nor is it really a plan so much as a prayer. If the bats don't snap out of it immediately, even if they do win the wild card game, they're going to get lose in the ALDS, because they need to score runs - this isn't the NL where other teams run out like 6 or 7 batters with an OBP of .290 or less and no power between them.

The_Hater · Post #74 » by **The_Hater** » Mon Oct 3, 2016 6:06 pm

wazabifuzz wrote:what about dickey in the pen. He may be able to give you 2 - 3 innings if the jays are up big.

Dickey won't be on the playoff roster.

LLJ · Post #75 » by **LLJ** » Mon Oct 3, 2016 6:10 pm

The_Hater wrote:
LLJ wrote:Either guy is fine, really. The other guy will be waiting if there are problems anyway.

If the guy who starts gets shelled early, it will probably be to late for the 2nd guy to save the day. Chosing the right starter is the most important aspect of tomorrow's game.

Just saying that there's really no strong case for one being definitively superior. Both have strengths and weaknesses. Liriano has been good for the past month, but he's always been up and down in his career, like any other decent but not elite starter. Stroman has had playoff experience in big situations and has arguably been "good enough" but you can make a case that someone else might be better. And remember, Stroman was red hot going into the playoffs last year too. If some thought he was overrated last year in the playoffs, then it goes to show just because you were hot in September doesn't mean it will carry over.

So I think with all those factors weighed, either guy is fine. They're both solid pitchers at the end of the day, and both are lefties. It's not like this is a case of choosing between a Sanchez and Dickey.

The_Hater · Post #76 » by **The_Hater** » Mon Oct 3, 2016 6:16 pm

LLJ wrote:
The_Hater wrote:
LLJ wrote:Either guy is fine, really. The other guy will be waiting if there are problems anyway.

If the guy who starts gets shelled early, it will probably be to late for the 2nd guy to save the day. Chosing the right starter is the most important aspect of tomorrow's game.

Just saying that there's really no strong case for one being definitively superior. Both have strengths and weaknesses. Liriano has been good for the past month, but he's always been up and down in his career, like any other decent but not elite starter. Stroman has had playoff experience in big situations and has arguably been "good enough" but you can make a case that someone else might be better. And remember, Stroman was red hot going into the playoffs last year too. If some thought he was overrated last year in the playoffs, then it goes to show just because you were hot in September doesn't mean it will carry over.

So I think with all those factors weighed, either guy is fine. They're both solid pitchers at the end of the day, and both are lefties. It's not like this is a case of choosing between a Sanchez and Dickey.

While you're right that it's not a Sanchez/Dickey no brainer, I think if we weigh all the factors Liriano is still the pretty clear choice. He handcuffed the orioles just last week and they've struggled against LHP all season. Stroman has not pitched well against the O's.

hyper316 · Post #77 » by **hyper316** » Mon Oct 3, 2016 6:17 pm

What time is the game?

EH15 · Post #78 » by **EH15** » Mon Oct 3, 2016 6:18 pm

8PM

OP update the title

super_balls · Post #79 » by **super_balls** » Mon Oct 3, 2016 6:19 pm

Any updates on time and who's pitching?

ocker · Post #80 » by **ocker** » Mon Oct 3, 2016 6:20 pm

http://theballpoint.org/index.php/2016/10/03/blue-jays-clinch-wild-card-expect-starts/

Little story our latest writer wrote about tomorrow night. PS where are you guys catching the game? Tossing up whether its worth going to one of the main places (jack Astors on university, real sports) or a lesser known place to enjoy it.