Bad luck and trouble's been my only friend, I've been down ever since I was ten.
Kris Medlen (1-5, 3.16) opens up the back half of this home-and-home set for the Braves. Esmil Rogers (1-2, 4.56) gets the call on the bump for the Blue Jays, who are depending on a guy who has not made a start in two years. That's not a bad sign at all, right? First pitch from Turner Field is set for 7:10 pm Eastern.
Medlen relies on three pitches — a fastball, curveball and changeup according to FanGraphs. The fastball has been around 89-90 miles per hour. His curve has clocked in at 76-77 and his changeup has been around 81-82. Medlen's strikeout percentage is down over six percent from last year to 17 percent and his walk rate is up nearly four percent to just over eight. He's also giving up over 1.14 homers per nine innings, an increase from nearly 0.4 homers per nine in 2012. His run support of 2.59 is among the worst in the National League.
In roster moves, Thad Weber — yesterday's losing pitcher after serving up a tater to Brian McCann — was sent down to Buffalo and Ramon Ortiz — who served up back-to-back gopher balls in relief of the ailing Brandon Morrow — was designed for assignment. With any luck, neither will don the Blue Jay blue again.
The injuries just continue to pile up for the Jays with Brett Lawrie set to go on the Disabled List. Andy LaRoche is expected to get the call up from Buffalo. Continuing the "don't piss in my ear and tell me it's raining" theme, Morrow may not be ready for his next start and Casey Janssen is less than 100 percent with a sore shoulder. We may see Bisons closer Neil Wagner getting called up as a result.
Even better news, the Jays will be without the DH as they kick off interleague play against the Braves and Padres so that means Adam Lind will be a pinch-hitter.
@BlueJays: Tonight's @BlueJays lineup:
Cabrera-LF
Bautista-RF
Encarnacion-1B
Arencibia-C
Rasmus-CF
Izturis-3B
Bonifacio-2B
Kawasaki-SS
Rogers-P
https://www.battersbox.ca/article.php?story=20130529001758399