Toronto Blue Jays at Baltimore Orioles

By Bush StaffUpdated 84d ago·2 min read
Toronto Blue JaysTOR(28-29)
Baltimore OriolesBAL(26-31)
65
FINAL
123456789RHE
TOR
0000004206102
BAL
002120000580

The Blue Jays open this one as a road favorite at -1.5, with Adam Macko (1-0, 0.00) drawing his first career MLB start opposite Trevor Rogers (2-6, 6.96). Rogers is coming off a 4.2-inning, 4-ER loss to Detroit on May 24. Macko has been a 6-appearance unicorn out of the pen — small sample, but the line is the line.

Toronto Blue Jays
Adam Macko
(2-0)·1.50 ERA
05/29 Lineup
Baltimore Orioles
Trevor Rogers
(3-6)·6.15 ERA
May 24 vs Tigers
L
4.2IP
4ER
2K
2BB
90P
05/29 Lineup

Macko's the story. The Canadian-developed lefty became the first Slovakia-born pitcher in MLB history when he debuted on May 18, and he hasn't allowed a run in 4.1 innings of relief work to this point. Now he gets stretched out against a real lineup in a real ballpark. Toronto's rotation has been gutted — Scherzer is just starting a rehab assignment at Triple-A Buffalo, Bieber is rehabbing in the FCL, and Berrios is done after Tommy John — so Macko isn't getting the ball here as a luxury. He's getting it because there's nobody else.

Toronto Blue Jays
Toronto Blue Jays
(19)
  • Day-To-DayGeovanny Jesus Planchart (C)no05/08
  • Day-To-DayChay Yeager (RP)Yeager will undergo season-ending UCL surgery on his right elbow Wednesday, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.05/08
  • Day-To-DayCJ Stubbs (C)The Blue Jays signed Stubbs to a minor-league contract Friday that includes an invitation to spring training.05/08
  • Day-To-DayJaven Coleman (P)no05/08
  • 10-Day-ILLenyn Sosa (2B)Sosa went 2-for-5 with a solo home run, an additional run and an additional RBI on Saturday against the Twins in an 11-4 victory.05/28
  • 10-Day-ILAddison Barger (RF)Blue Jays manager John Schneider said Wednesday that Barger (elbow) will resume throwing "probably [Thursday]," Mitch Bannon of The Athletic reports.05/27
  • 15-Day-ILDylan Cease (SP)Cease (hamstring) is expected to throw a bullpen session this weekend, Ian Quillen of MLB.com reports.05/29
  • 15-Day-ILJoe Mantiply (RP)Mantiply will undergo arthroscopic surgery to repair some damage in his left knee, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.05/28
  • 15-Day-ILMax Scherzer (SP)Scherzer (forearm) will begin a rehab assignment at Triple-A Buffalo on Sunday, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.05/28
  • 15-Day-ILTommy Nance (RP)Manager John Schneider said Tuesday that the outlook for Nance's forearm injury is a "best case" scenario, Keegan Matheson of MLB.com reports.05/19
  • developmental listFernando Perez (P)
  • 60-Day-ILLazaro Estrada (RP)The Blue Jays transferred Estrada (shoulder) to the 60-day injured list Thursday.05/28
  • 60-Day-ILJose Berrios (SP)Blue Jays manager John Schneider said that Berrios underwent full Tommy John surgery Wednesday in addition to having a stress fracture repaired, Hazel Mae of Sportsnet reports.05/27
  • 60-Day-ILAlejandro Kirk (C)Kirk (thumb) is aiming to start hitting off a pitching machine this weekend and begin a rehab assignment by the start of the Blue Jays' June 5-14 homestand, Mitch Bannon of The Athletic reports.05/27
  • 60-Day-ILShane Bieber (SP)Bieber (elbow) allowed three hits while striking out three batters across two scoreless innings in his rehab start Monday in the rookie-level Florida Complex League.05/25
  • 60-Day-ILYimi Garcia (RP)Manager John Schneider said Garcia (elbow) threw a bullpen session Friday, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.05/22
  • 60-Day-ILAnthony Santander (RF)Toronto transferred Santander (shoulder) from the 10-day injured list to the 60-day IL on Sunday.05/08
  • 60-Day-ILCody Ponce (SP)Ponce underwent surgery Friday to repair the ACL in his right knee, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.05/08
  • 60-Day-ILBowden Francis (SP)The Blue Jays placed Francis (elbow) on the 60-day injured list Wednesday.05/08
Baltimore Orioles
Baltimore Orioles
(15)
  • Day-To-DayLevi Wells (P)Wells underwent successful core-muscle surgery Thursday, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.05/28
  • Day-To-DayYennier Cano (RP)Cano was removed from Wednesday's game against the Rays due to right hamstring discomfort, Rich Dubroff of BaltimoreBaseball.com reports.05/28
  • Day-To-DayRichard Guasch (SP)no05/08
  • Day-To-DayWill Robertson (LF)The Orioles reassigned Robertson to minor-league camp Wednesday, Jacob Calvin Meyer of The Baltimore Sun reports.05/08
  • Day-To-DayLuis Vazquez (SS)Orioles manager Craig Albernaz said Monday that Vazquez has been diagnosed with a broken right thumb, Andy Kostka of TheBaltimoreBanner.com reports.05/08
  • 10-Day-ILDylan Beavers (RF)Beavers (oblique) hit in the batting cage Wednesday, Matt Weyrich of The Baltimore Sun reports.05/27
  • 15-Day-ILCade Povich (SP)Povich (elbow) met with Dr. Keith Meister on Tuesday and is without an official timetable for his return after receiving a cortisone injection, Matt Weyrich of The Baltimore Sun reports.05/19
  • 15-Day-ILRyan Helsley (RP)Helsley (elbow) played catch Friday, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.05/15
  • 15-Day-ILDean Kremer (SP)Orioles manager Craig Albernaz said Monday that Kremer (quadriceps) has begun a throwing program, Jacob Calvin Meyer of The Baltimore Sun reports.05/11
  • 60-Day-ILColin Selby (RP)Selby was recently evaluated by Dr. Chris Looze in Baltimore due to ongoing symptoms with his injured right shoulder, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.05/19
  • 60-Day-ILRyan Mountcastle (1B)General manager Mike Elias said Friday that Mountcastle is expected to return sometime in late June or July, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.05/15
  • 60-Day-ILJordan Westburg (3B)Westburg (elbow) underwent Tommy John surgery Wednesday, Andrew Golden of TheBanner.com reports.05/15
  • 60-Day-ILYaramil Hiraldo (RP)The Orioles announced Monday that Hiraldo (shoulder) has resumed a throwing program, Jacob Calvin Meyer of The Baltimore Sun reports.05/11
  • 60-Day-ILZach Eflin (SP)Eflin underwent Tommy John surgery on his right elbow Wednesday, Andy Kostka of TheBaltimoreBanner.com reports.05/08
  • 60-Day-ILFelix Bautista (RP)Bautista (shoulder) threw a baseball Tuesday for the first time since undergoing surgery last August, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.05/08

Rogers, meanwhile, is in the kind of slump that makes managers stare at the floor in press conferences. The Orioles are 0-5 in his last 5 starts, and he's coughed up 25 earned runs across 19 innings in that stretch. His velocity is fine, his stuff+ grades are fine, and yet hitters are slashing .500/.579/.750 against him with two outs since mid-April. This is the most baffling kind of bad — nothing visibly broken, everything coming apart.

Baltimore did just take 3 of 4 from Tampa Bay before dropping last night's series opener 2-1 to Toronto, so the lineup is in better shape than the rotation suggests. The trouble is the home side keeps catching the wrong end of the pitching matchup. With Kremer and Povich on the IL, Eflin gone for the year after Tommy John, and Helsley still playing catch, the O's are running out of arms to plug the holes.

Toronto Blue Jays
Toronto Blue Jays
(28-29)
May 28W@ Orioles2-1
May 27Wvs Marlins2-1
May 26Wvs Marlins8-1
May 25Lvs Marlins2-8
May 24Lvs Pirates1-4
Baltimore Orioles
Baltimore Orioles
(26-31)
May 28Lvs Blue Jays1-2
May 27Wvs Rays11-2
May 26Wvs Rays6-1
May 25Wvs Rays9-7
May 24Lvs Tigers1-4

DraftKings ticket counts have 73% of spread bets on Baltimore +1.5 and 61% on the over 8.5, which tracks for a public reading Macko's name and assuming a rookie debut gets ambushed. Pinnacle disagrees — the home moneyline sits at -111 with a 51.5% fair probability, basically a coin flip. If Macko's bullpen stuff plays in a starting role for even 4 innings, Toronto's bullpen has been the steadier group, and that's where this one tips.

Bottom line: a curiosity start for the Jays against a Rogers outing that nobody in Birdland wants to watch. If you're sitting down at 6:05 PM ET, the read is Macko's pitch count — once he hits 70, it's a bullpen game, and that's a fight the Orioles aren't winning right now.

MLBToronto Blue JaysBaltimore OriolesPolymarketKalshiAdam MackoTrevor Rogers