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	<title>Toronto &#187; Los Angeles Angels</title>
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	<description>Comprehensive coverage of the Toronto Blue Jays</description>
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		<title>Recap: Angels 6, Blue Jays 1: Los Angeles Flips Script, Shuts Out Toronto</title>
		<link>http://toronto.locals.baseballprospectus.com/2016/09/18/recap-angels-6-blue-jays-1-los-angeles-flips-script-shuts-out-toronto/</link>
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		<pubDate>Sun, 18 Sep 2016 04:23:43 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Gideon Turk]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Articles]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Recaps]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Los Angeles Angels]]></category>
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		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://toronto.locals.baseballprospectus.com/?p=6729</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Sloppy. That&#8217;s the type of the game the Blue Jays played tonight as they lost to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim by a score of 6-1. Francisco Liriano got the start for Toronto, and despite looking good early, he was hurt by some key errors and extended innings that allowed the Angels to take advantage [&#8230;]]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Sloppy.</p>
<p>That&#8217;s the type of the game the Blue Jays played tonight as they lost to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim by a score of 6-1. Francisco Liriano got the start for Toronto, and despite looking good early, he was hurt by some key errors and extended innings that allowed the Angels to take advantage and score four runs (two earned) before Liriano came out of the game after the sixth inning. The Blue Jays defense committed three errors on the evening, one by Liriano, one by first baseman Justin Smoak, and one from third baseman Josh Donaldson. In the bullpen, Ryan Tepera had a rough game, allowing two (unearned) runs on two hits, while Bo Schultz pitched a perfect bottom of the eighth.</p>
<p>Like it seems they have been doing all month, the Blue Jays stranded plenty of runners on the evening, with the leadoff batter reaching on six occasions, and only scoring once, in the eighth inning. The team grounded into one double play on the evening, and went 1 for 12 with runners in scoring position. The lone bright spot in the Blue Jays order came from Devon Travis once again, as he continued his fantastic sophomore season with another three hits, going 3 for 5, and raising his batting average to .309.</p>
<h3>Top Play of the Game by WPA</h3>
<p>Moments after the Sportsnet broadcast showed the <em>Albert Pujols countdown to 600 home run</em> <em>sign</em> in the second inning, Pujols launched a 1-2 slider to deep left field to put the Angels on the scoreboard with a 1-0 lead. That was the beginning of Francisco Liriano&#8217;s trouble, and increased the Angels&#8217; chances of winning by 11.8 percentage points.</p>
<h3>Bottom Play of the Game by WPA</h3>
<p>Down 2-0 in the top of the sixth inning, Russell Martin lead off with a base hit off of Ricky Nolasco. That brought up Troy Tulowitzki, who after taking a ball in the dirt and fouling off of a couple of pitches, grounded a slider into a double play that lowered the Blue Jays&#8217; odds of winning by 10.1 percentage points.</p>
<h3>Boston Wins, Baltimore Loses</h3>
<p>In divison race news, the Boston Red Sox beat the New York Yankees 6-5 on Saturday afternoon, and with the Blue Jays loss, moved to three games ahead with the division lead. The Orioles, also in play on Saturday, lost to the Tampa Bay Rays 5-2, and remain tied with the Blue Jays in second place.</p>
<h3>Up Next</h3>
<p>The Blue Jays will look to win the series and stay close with their division opponents on Sunday afternoon. Marcus Stroman (9-8, 4.55) will take the mound for Toronto, while Los Angeles will counter with Alex Meyer (0-3, 8.18). First pitch is set for 3:35 PM ET.</p>
<p>The Red Sox (+3.0 on the Jays) and Orioles (tied with the Jays) will both be in action on Sunday as well. The Red Sox are home and will be taking on the Yankees at 8:05 PM ET, while the Orioles are also at home, facing the Tampa Bay Rays at 1:35 PM ET.</p>
<p><em>Lead Photo: Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports</em></p>
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		<title>Recap: Angels 6, Blue Jays 3; Weaver Wipes Away Toronto</title>
		<link>http://toronto.locals.baseballprospectus.com/2016/08/25/recap-angels-6-blue-jays-3-weaver-wipes-away-toronto/</link>
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		<pubDate>Fri, 26 Aug 2016 02:16:07 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Gideon Turk]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Articles]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Recaps]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Los Angeles Angels]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Toronto Blue Jays]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://toronto.locals.baseballprospectus.com/?p=5917</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[If you decided not to watch tonight&#8217;s game because you assumed the Blue Jays would cruise to a blowout victory, nobody would fault you. Jered Weaver has been awful this season, entering tonight&#8217;s game with a 5.47 ERA in 24 starts for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Conversely, J.A. Happ came into the game tonight [&#8230;]]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>If you decided not to watch tonight&#8217;s game because you assumed the Blue Jays would cruise to a blowout victory, nobody would fault you. Jered Weaver has been awful this season, entering tonight&#8217;s game with a 5.47 ERA in 24 starts for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Conversely, J.A. Happ came into the game tonight in the thick of the Cy Young debate, leading the league with 17 wins and posting a 3.05 ERA in 150 1/3 innings pitcher so far. However, you can&#8217;t predict baseball, and thus, the expected outcome was not the case tonight.</p>
<p>The Blue Jays were struggling to hit the slow throwing Weaver, as they managed just two runs on three hits through the first five innings. Things fell apart for Happ in the top of the sixth, as he got messed over by some lucky bounces and ground ball hits. John Gibbons came to get him after zero outs had been recorded and the Angels scored three runs, bringing in Joe Biagini to try to get out of the jam. He recorded a ground ball to get a couple of outs and got Andrelton Simmons on a flyball to end the inning, but another run scored on the double play to make it a 4-2 ballgame. The Blue Jays threatened in their half of the sixth loading the bases with two outs, but Darwin Barney grounded out to end the inning and keep the Jays off of the scoreboard again. The Blue Jays allowed another two runs in the seventh inning, as Joaquin Benoit allowed a two run single to Mike Trout that doubled the Angels&#8217; lead to 6-2. The Blue Jays got one in the ninth, but still lost the game 6-3 and the series two games to one.</p>
<p>In the end, it was an ugly game tonight for Toronto. This is one they should have won, and instead, they came out and couldn&#8217;t do anything. They didn&#8217;t lose ground because the Red Sox lost earlier in the day, so they still lead the division, but not capitalizing on this opportunity could cost them later in the schedule. This was a tough one to watch. Awful.</p>
<h3>Top Play of the Game by WPA</h3>
<p>The top play in tonight&#8217;s game came off of the bat from baseball&#8217;s best player, Mike Trout. With the bases loaded and nobody out in the top of the sixth inning, Trout stepped up to the plate against J.A. Happ hoping to put the Angels on the board for the first time tonight. He did just that, hitting a ground ball to left field that scored both Kaleb Cowart and Gregorio Petit, and increasing the Angels&#8217; WPA by 16.2 percentage points.</p>
<h3>Bottom Play of the Game by WPA</h3>
<p>After Kevin Pillar and Melvin Upton Jr. singled with two outs in the bottom of the sixth inning, Ezequiel Carrera walked to load the bases. That brought up Darwin Barney, who grounded out, keeping the score at 4-2, and lowering the Blue Jays&#8217; chances of winning by 11.8%.</p>
<h3>Trend to Watch</h3>
<p>Brett Cecil hasn&#8217;t had the best season to date, but for some reason, manager John Gibbons has kept on throwing him into the fire expecting different results. It is *probably* time for him to stop doing that, as yet again, Gibbons put him in a tough situation tonight and Cecil failed to deliver. After Joe Biagini put two runners on in the seventh inning, Cecil was summoned with one out to record an out against a lefty in Kole Calhoun. Instead, he walked him, and was promptly removed from the game. He has allowed a .385/.432/.615 line in high leverage spots in 2016, which is&#8230;not good. We know Cecil is very talented, but sometimes relievers just have those seasons. Things happen.</p>
<h3>Up Next</h3>
<p>After dropping two of three from the lowly Los Angeles Angels, the Blue Jays will continue to host less than stellar ballclubs as the Minnesota Twins come to town for a three game series. Pitching the series opener for the Blue Jays will be Francisco Liriano (6-12, 5.21) and he will be opposed by Pat Dean (1-3, 5.48). First pitch is set for 7:07 PM ET Friday.</p>
<p><em>Lead Photo: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports</em></p>
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		<title>Recap: Angels 8, Blue Jays 2; Estrada&#8217;s Struggles Continue as Jays Get Pounded</title>
		<link>http://toronto.locals.baseballprospectus.com/2016/08/24/recap-angels-8-blue-jays-2-estradas-struggles-continue-as-jays-get-pounded/</link>
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		<pubDate>Thu, 25 Aug 2016 02:36:34 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Jenn Smith]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Articles]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Recaps]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Los Angeles Angels]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Marco Estrada]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Toronto Blue Jays]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://toronto.locals.baseballprospectus.com/?p=5869</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[With a difficult stretch in the schedule coming up during which the Jays play three games against both the Baltimore Orioles and Boston Red Sox, they no doubt were looking to take advantage of a home stand against weaker opponents, beginning with the Angels. While the Jays were firing on all cylinders last night, tonight [&#8230;]]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>With a difficult stretch in the schedule coming up during which the Jays play three games against both the Baltimore Orioles and Boston Red Sox, they no doubt were looking to take advantage of a home stand against weaker opponents, beginning with the Angels. While the Jays were firing on all cylinders last night, tonight was just not their night. Marco Estrada, who has scuffled since the implementation of the six-man rotation, got rocked early, giving up back-to-back home runs against the always dangerous Mike Trout and Albert Pujols. In all fairness to Estrada, both pitches were down around the shins of Trout and Pujols and sometimes you just have to tip your cap to the opposing hitters.</p>
<p>All told, Estrada surrendered six earned runs on ten hits (both season highs for Estrada) in five innings of work. The Jays&#8217; offense was unable to get anything going against Angels&#8217; starter Matt Shoemaker, who shut out the Jays on three hits through six strong innings. Both Scott Feldman and Aaron Loup gave up a run in relief to make it 8-0 Angels, but those runs made absolutely no difference to the outcome of the game. The Jays did avoid the shutout, when Russell Martin &#8211; who leads American League catchers in RBI &#8211; singled off JC Ramirez to drive home Josh Donaldson. They scored a second run in the bottom of the ninth to make it 8-2 but it was much too little much too late. Chalk it up to being just one of those nights.</p>
<h3>Top Play of the Game by WPA</h3>
<p>With the Angels already up 2-0 in the top of the second, Jett Bandy led off the second inning with a single to left field, advancing to second base on a groundout by Kaleb Cowart. A subsequent walk to former Jays infielder Cliff Pennington brought Kole Calhoun to the plate, who doubled to right to score Bandy on what was the top play of the game by WPA (.104).</p>
<h3>Bottom Play of the Game by WPA</h3>
<p>Down 6-0 in the fourth, the Jays attempted to mount a comeback when Josh Donaldson led off the inning with a single to right followed by a walk to Edwin Encarnacion. Russell Martin flied out to right, advancing Donaldson to third. But, Troy Tulowitzki struck out swinging for the second out of the inning, eliminating the possibility of a sacrifice on what was ultimately the bottom play of the game by WPA (-.028).</p>
<h3>Trend to Watch</h3>
<p>Much has been made of the fact that Estrada has been cold since the implementation of the six-man rotation. In his first two starts since Francisco Liriano was added to the rotation, Estrada gave up a total of eight runs (seven earned) in just nine innings of work. Tonight was no different. While I am loathe to suggest causation with such a small sample size, it was Estrada himself who had stated that he needed to adjust to the additional rest. Whether or not that&#8217;s the reason for his recent woes or if there&#8217;s some other factor at work is impossible to know, but it will certainly be speculated about in the days to come. One would imagine that if it is indeed the issue, the Jays may attempt to set up their rotation in such a way to allow Estrada to pitch on regular rest. Regardless of the cause, one hopes that Estrada figures it out and can regain the form he&#8217;s had for most of the past two seasons.</p>
<h3>Up Next</h3>
<p>The Jays will attempt to win the series tomorrow when Cy Young candidate J.A. Happ will take his 3.05 ERA to the mound in search of his 18th victory of the season. He&#8217;ll do battle against Jered Weaver, who&#8217;s struggled this season to the tune of a 5.47 ERA and 1.53 WHIP. Weaver is a shadow of his former self. His diminished velocity provided a feeding frenzy for the Yankees Friday night, so expect the Jays&#8217; offense to find their groove again. Something else to look forward to: Jose Bautista is expected to return to the lineup. First pitch flies at 7:07 PM ET.</p>
<p><em>Lead Photo: Kevin Sousa-USA TODAY Sports</em></p>
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		<title>Recap: Blue Jays 7, Angels 2; Blue Jays Break Seventh Seal, Silence Angels</title>
		<link>http://toronto.locals.baseballprospectus.com/2016/08/23/recap-blue-jays-7-angels-2-blue-jays-break-seventh-seal-silence-angels/</link>
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		<pubDate>Wed, 24 Aug 2016 01:57:11 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Dave Church]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Articles]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Recaps]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Los Angeles Angels]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Toronto Blue Jays]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://toronto.locals.baseballprospectus.com/?p=5833</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[With their offense sputtering in the Cleveland series, the Blue Jays came back home hoping to build some confidence against a struggling L.A. Angels squad. They got their wish, mixing a balanced offensive attack and a good start from their knuckleballer to beat the Angels 7-2. R.A. Dickey was solid, mostly avoiding the big innings [&#8230;]]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>With their offense sputtering in the Cleveland series, the Blue Jays came back home hoping to build some confidence against a struggling L.A. Angels squad. They got their wish, mixing a balanced offensive attack and a good start from their knuckleballer to beat the Angels 7-2.</p>
<p>R.A. Dickey was solid, mostly avoiding the big innings that occasionally plague his starts. He did get into trouble in the second inning, when Andrelton Simmons led off with a single, and was driven home when left fielder Nick Buss went yard. After that, it was relatively quiet, as Dickey kept the Angels off the board. But the important players were mostly silent, and Dickey finished with a solid line: 6 and 2/3 innings, six hits, two walk, two runs, and two strikeouts. The one home run accounted for all the damage, and Dickey&#8217;s done a good job limiting home runs of late, which have been a problem for him all through his Jays career. The bullpen kept it quiet after Dickey left, as Joe Biagini and Scott Feldman wrapped up the game without a lot of fuss.</p>
<p>Angels starter Tyler Skaggs didn&#8217;t make much account of himself, managing only one clean inning before eventually being removed after one batter in the fifth. Darwin Barney, who was in the lineup for Devon Travis, led off the game with a double and later scored on a Russell Martin single. The third inning saw the Jays get two more runs after the first four batters reached base, though it was on three walks, a single, and a double play. Kevin Pillar led off the fourth with a double, and was cashed in on a Josh Thole sacrifice fly. After Skaggs walked the first batter in the fifth inning, Angels manager Mike Scioscia had seen enough, and called for Mike Morin from the bullpen. Though Josh Donaldson was erased when he was caught stealing, the Jays did get two more runs off Morin, widening their lead.</p>
<h3>Top Play of the Game by WPA</h3>
<p>There was one out in the second inning, and Simmons had just reached base on an infield single, when Buss strode to the plate and hit a no-doubter to right field, giving the Angels a 2-1 lead. This had a positive WPA of .188, as the Angels were trailing prior to the home run, and leading after it.</p>
<h3>Bottom Play of the Game by WPA</h3>
<p>The Jays were trailing 2-1 in the third inning, and Mike Trout led off the inning with a walk. Albert Pujols then grounded into a double play, eliminating both runners and ending the Angels&#8217; threat. This had a WPA of -.072, as one of the few times the Angels really threatened after the second inning.Jay</p>
<h3>MVPs Get TOOTBLANed</h3>
<p>The reigning American League MVP had a tough night on the bases, one of the few warts in a game the Jays should generally be happy about. Though the Jays did get two runs in the fifth inning, they could have had more if not for Donaldson getting caught stealing with nobody out after Morin came into the game. Then in the seventh, he hit one into the outfield corner, and was caught easily trying to stretch it into a double. Thankfully for the Jays, it didn&#8217;t matter much in the end.</p>
<p>Not to be outdone, perennial MVP candidate Mike Trout got in on the fun in the eighth inning. He did steal a base off Biagini, but was caught stealing shortly after, when Biagini stepped off and caught him trying to sneak to third base.</p>
<h3>Martin Mashes</h3>
<p>Martin was inserted into the cleanup spot for tonight&#8217;s game, getting a rare start at DH. He rewarded John Gibbons for the move, going 2 for 4 with a walk, two runs, and an RBI. With Michael Saunders struggling, one wonders if Gibbons might look at that as a more permanent arrangement.</p>
<h3>Up Next</h3>
<p>Tomorrow&#8217;s game is at 7:07 ET. The Jays will start Marco Estrada (7-5, 3.20 ) to the mound, and he&#8217;ll be opposed by Matt Shoemaker (7-13, 4.14 ERA). Estrada is coming off his worst start of the year, going just four innings against the Yankees, allowing five runs and three home runs, though the Jays rallied for a 12-6 win. Shoemaker most recently notched a win against the Mariners, going seven innings, allowing two runs on five hits and two walks, striking out five.</p>
<p><em>Lead Photo: John E. Sokolowski &#8211; USA Today</em></p>
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		<title>The Los Angeles Mike Trouts of Anaheim: Angels Series Preview</title>
		<link>http://toronto.locals.baseballprospectus.com/2016/08/23/the-los-angeles-mike-trouts-of-anaheim-angels-series-preview/</link>
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		<pubDate>Tue, 23 Aug 2016 16:04:53 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Dave Church]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Articles]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Series Preview]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Los Angeles Angels]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Toronto Blue Jays]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://toronto.locals.baseballprospectus.com/?p=5773</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Toronto Blue Jays vs. Los Angeles Angels August 23rd &#8211; August 25th Written by Dave Church and Joshua Howsam After a frustrating series against the Indians, the Jays return to the comfortable confines of the Rogers Centre to face the scuffling Los Angeles Angels. This is the first time these two teams have played each other this season. [&#8230;]]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<h2 style="text-align: center">Toronto Blue Jays vs. Los Angeles Angels</h2>
<h3 style="text-align: center">August 23rd &#8211; August 25th</h3>
<p style="text-align: center"><em>Written by <a href="http://toronto.locals.baseballprospectus.com/author/davidchurch/">Dave Church</a> and <a href="http://toronto.locals.baseballprospectus.com/author/joshuahowsam/">Joshua Howsam</a></em></p>
<p>After a frustrating series against the Indians, the Jays return to the comfortable confines of the Rogers Centre to face the scuffling Los Angeles Angels. This is the first time these two teams have played each other this season. Both teams had an off day on Monday. The Angels, who are sitting in last place in the AL West, have had a forgettable month of August, going 5-14 so far this month. With a lot of divisional matchups coming in September, this is an opportunity for the Jays to bank some wins against an easier opponent. Let&#8217;s take a look at some of the matchups.</p>
<h4>Tuesday, August 23rd – 7:07 PM ET</h4>
<p><strong>R.A. Dickey vs. Tyler Skaggs</strong></p>
<p>An awful start then a quietly effective recovery by the end of the season has been par for the course for R.A. Dickey in his time with the Blue Jays. This season has seen some of that, as an awful April that saw him finish with a 6.75 ERA was down as low as 3.93 on July 10th.  His remaining July starts were bad, allowing 18 runs in three games, and his August has been a mixed bag: though he did have two starts where he allowed just one run, his last start against the Yankees was misleading, as he gave up four hits and walked four batters in 5.2 innings of work, getting into and out of jams on several occasions. His knuckleball velocity is still increasing from month to month, which has usually been a good sign, as he uses the harder knuckleball to get more outs. Dickey being prone to the fly-ball won&#8217;t be as much of an issue with a power-hungry Angels team, who are 25th in baseball in home runs hit with 118 on the season.</p>
<p>Tyler Skaggs has only five starts to his name this year, after returning from the Tommy John surgery that ended his 2014 season. After a promising July with two shutouts, he has struggled mightily in August, allowing 15 runs in just 13.2 innings over three starts. He features a fourseam fastball, curveball, and a changeup. The fastball comes in around 93-94, and he uses it just short of 60% of the time. He also used a sinker during the first couple years of his career, though it has been on the shelf since his return from injury. The curveball is his best pitch, and batters seem to be hitting it this month: After an .077 average (SMALL SAMPLE SIZE KLAXON) against the curve in July, hitters have been hitting .389 against it in August.  He&#8217;s faced the Jays just twice in his career, recording a 1-1 record and a 3.07 ERA.</p>
<h4>Wednesday, August 24th – 7:07 PM ET</h4>
<p><strong>Marco Estrada vs. Matt Shoemaker</strong></p>
<p>Estrada is looking to bounce back from his worst outing of the season, going only four innings and allowing five runs (and three home runs) against the Yankees on August 16th in the eventual 12-6 win. The off-day from Estrada was a surprise because he&#8217;s been incredibly consistent this season. You know what you&#8217;re getting from Estrada at this point: a high-80s fastball, a dynamite changeup, six-plus innings, two to three runs, and a bunch of befuddled hitters who can&#8217;t seem to figure him out. The short porch of Yankee Stadium was a bad fit for a flyball pitcher like Estrada, and it showed with the three home runs against, the most he&#8217;s allowed this season. As with Dickey, this Angels lineup should be a nice matchup for Marco Estrada, with the lack of power outside of Mike Trout and Albert Pujols.</p>
<p>Matt Shoemaker is an interesting story: signed by the Angels as an amateur free-agent after going undrafted in 2008, he beat the odds and made it to the majors in 2013. He forced his way into the rotation in 2014, finishing with a surprising 16 wins and placing second in the AL Rookie of the Year award. He&#8217;s been unable to hit those heights since, going 7-10 with a 4.46 ERA in 2015, and struggling to a 7-13 record and a 4.14 ERA this season.  That line is dragged down by an awful April, where he had a 9.15 ERA in five starts. He has a mixed bag of pitches, with a split-fingered fastball being his most featured offering.</p>
<p><a href="http://toronto.locals.baseballprospectus.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2016/08/Brooksbaseball-Chart.png"><img class="aligncenter  wp-image-5799" src="http://toronto.locals.baseballprospectus.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2016/08/Brooksbaseball-Chart-1024x683.png" alt="Brooksbaseball-Chart" width="546" height="364" /></a></p>
<p>It&#8217;s rare to see a pitcher feature the splitter so prominently, but after April, he&#8217;s thrown less and less of the curve and slider as the season has gone along. The Jays have had success against Shoemaker in the two games they&#8217;ve had against him, notching ten runs (and three home runs) over 9.2 career innings. Given his 3.31 ERA since April, this might be a tougher test for the Jays than Shoemaker&#8217;s record would indicate.</p>
<h4>Thursday, August 25th – 7:07 PM ET</h4>
<p><strong>J.A. Happ vs. Jered Weaver</strong></p>
<p>It&#8217;s not been enough for J.A. Happ to have a fantastic season, he&#8217;s also gotten tremendous run support in his starts. The Jays have gotten an average of 6.4 runs for him when he&#8217;s taken the hill, which has helped propel him to an American League leading 17 wins so far. He&#8217;s been especially great since the beginning of July, with a 7-0 record and a 1.79 ERA in eight starts, notching a hilarious 63 strikeouts in 50.2 innings. A righty-heavy Angels lineup isn&#8217;t much of a concern, as Happ&#8217;s splits have been mostly nominal. With Estrada struggling (for him, anyway), and Sanchez now working out in Dunedin, Happ gets to take his turn as the Blue Jays&#8217; ace.</p>
<p>Jered Weaver is several years removed from his time as the ace of the Angels, and basically playing out the string on the 5 year, $85 million contract he signed prior to the 2012 season. And while he was never someone with tremendous velocity, going from 95 to 91 on your fastball is a little different than going from 91 to 85, as Weaver has over the past several seasons.</p>
<p><a href="http://toronto.locals.baseballprospectus.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2016/08/Brooksbaseball-Chart-1.png"><img class="aligncenter  wp-image-5803" src="http://toronto.locals.baseballprospectus.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2016/08/Brooksbaseball-Chart-1-1024x683.png" alt="Brooksbaseball-Chart (1)" width="552" height="368" /></a></p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Weaver has a 8-11 record and a 5.47 ERA on the season. While Shoemaker&#8217;s record can be blamed partly on a bad start and partly on the offense he&#8217;s saddled with, Weaver has earned everything that record indicates. He&#8217;s plainly been bad this year, and the Angels don&#8217;t have anyone right now who can push him out of the rotation. This should be a good matchup for the Jays.</p>
<h3>Additions and Subtractions</h3>
<p>The Blue Jays roster will look slightly different for the start of this series. Aaron Sanchez was sent down to Dunedin (a procedural move, since he was going to be skipped in his next start) in favour of Aaron Loup, and with the return of Kevin Pillar from the DL, one of Loup or Ryan Tepera will be heading to the minors Tuesday. If Jose Bautista is able to return with a minimum DL stint, he will be back Thursday and will likely take the spot of whichever of those two relievers survived the initial purge.</p>
<p>The Angels made a bunch of roster moves in their last series, activating and cleanup hitter CJ Cron from the DL, and calling up 3B Kaleb Cowart from Salt Lake. To make room for the two starters, they designated 2B Johnny Giovatella for assignment, and placed Yunel Escobar on the 7-day concussion list. Of all the series to miss, Escobar is probably happy not to have to come back to Toronto. The Angels also swapped out the 25th man on their roster, recalling RHP A.J. Achter and optioning outfielder Ji-Man Choi.</p>
<h3>Keep an Eye On</h3>
<h4>Mike Trout Revenge</h4>
<p>About this time last year, the Blue Jays rolled into Los Angeles (Anaheim) with postseason spots on the line for both clubs. The Jays steamrolled the Angels, and Josh Donaldson essentially sewed up his MVP award in the head-to-head matchup. The Angels ended up missing a wild card by one game, so that series sweep really hurt them. This time around, the Angels will be looking to play spoiler, and Trout will be looking to put <em>himself</em> at the forefront of the MVP Race. Look for a big series out of the best player in the game.</p>
<p><strong>A Pillar of Stability</strong></p>
<p>Say what you want about Kevin Pillar&#8217;s shortcomings, but it&#8217;s clear that he is an important part of both this defense and this offense. On the defensive side, his elite play in CF allows the Jays to use Melvin Upton Jr. in a corner, increasing the overall defensive talent on the field, and getting Saunders off his feet every now and then. On the offensive side, Pillar may not ever take walks but he does make a ton of contact, which is something that has been <a title="The Jays are Missing their Regulars (and the Baseball)" href="http://toronto.locals.baseballprospectus.com/2016/08/23/the-jays-are-swinging-and-missing-their-regulars/" target="_blank">a very big problem of late</a>.</p>
<p><strong>Upton Power Show</strong></p>
<p>Melvin Upton Jr.&#8217;s start in Toronto wasn&#8217;t exactly what he hoped for. He started out hitting .167/.193/.167 with 22 strikeouts in 54 PA. He seems to be starting to heat up though. His last five games have seen him go 6/18 with three HRs, three BBs and six RBI. It&#8217;s obviously a super small sample, but if he can stay hot for just a few more games, it will seriously help bridge the gap until Jose Bautista is able to return from his latest injury.</p>
<h3>Probable Lineup</h3>
<table style="background-color: #ffffff;border-collapse: collapse;border: 1px solid #000000;color: #000000;width: 100%" border="1" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="2">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center">
<h3>LA Angels</h3>
</td>
<td style="text-align: center">
<h3>Toronto Blue Jays</h3>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center">1 Kole Calhoun RF</td>
<td style="text-align: center">1 Devon Travis 2B</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center">2 Mike Trout CF</td>
<td style="text-align: center">2 Josh Donaldson 3B</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center">3 Albert Pujols 1B</td>
<td style="text-align: center">3 Edwin Encarnacion 1B</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center">4 CJ Cron DH</td>
<td style="text-align: center">4 Michael Saunders DH</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center">5 Andrelton Simmons SS</td>
<td style="text-align: center">5 Russell Martin C</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center">6 Nick Buss LF</td>
<td style="text-align: center">6 Troy Tulowitzki SS</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center">7 Kaleb Cowart 3B</td>
<td style="text-align: center">7 Kevin Pillar CF</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center">8 Carlos Perez C</td>
<td style="text-align: center">8 Melvin Upton Jr. RF</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="text-align: center">9 Cliff Pennington 2B</td>
<td style="text-align: center">9 Ezequiel Carrera LF</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p><em>via <a href="http://www.rosterresource.com" target="_blank">Roster Resource</a></em></p>
<h3>Final Thoughts</h3>
<p>This is a big homestand for the Blue Jays to rebound from the disappointing series in Cleveland, and the last chance to beat up on weaker opponents before things get tough. The Angels are reeling, having gone 3-3 right off a disastrous 11-game losing streak. Toronto needs to win at least two here, and at least two in the next series against Minnesota, as things will start to get much tougher after that with divisional play in September.</p>
<p><em>Lead Photo: Nick Turchiaro-USA TODAY Sports</em></p>
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