First pitch is 7:07 PM ET in Toronto and the pitching matchup is the whole story: Wheeler (5-1, 2.31) on three extra days of rest against Dylan Cease (3-3, 3.05), who's being activated off the 15-day IL to make this start after a hamstring strain knocked him out May 24.
Wheeler is the kind of guy you don't want to see after your team just dropped a game. His last time out he carved up the Padres for 7 innings, 8 K, 2 ER on 104 pitches. Cease, meanwhile, has thrown exactly one rehab inning's worth of competitive baseball in the last 2 weeks — 4 IP, 5 ER, 6 K, 75 pitches at Triple-A Buffalo. The strikeouts are still there. The command is the question.
Philly comes in 36-30, winners of 4 of 5, and just rolled Toronto 5-2 on Monday behind a Cristopher Sanchez gem. The Jays are 32-35, treading water under .500, and their rotation has been held together with duct tape — Berrios is out for the year after Tommy John, Bieber is rehabbing, and Scherzer is penciled in for Wednesday. Getting Cease back, even a rusty version, is genuinely the biggest thing happening in their season this week.
The line tells you exactly what the market thinks of this spot: Phillies -115, Jays +104, with Toronto getting +1.5 at -170. Pinnacle has the total at 7.5. Translation — books expect Wheeler to do Wheeler things and Cease to give up some early traffic before settling in. The Over is the side that gets interesting only if Cease's command isn't there in the first 3 innings.
- Day-To-DayCarson DeMartini SS
- Day-To-DayRene Pinto C — Pinto (undisclosed) began a rehab assignment Monday, Kristie Ackert of the Tampa Bay Times reports.
- Day-To-DayDaniel Robert RP — Robert suffered a cardiac incident Sunday while preparing to throw a bullpen session and was taken to a local hospital, Matt Gelb of The Athletic reports.
- Day-To-DayMark Kolozsvary C — Kolozsvary (undisclosed) agreed to a minor-league contract with the Phillies on Friday that includes an invitation to spring training, Will Sammon of The Athletic reports.
- 15-Day-ILKyle Backhus RP — Backhus (elbow) played catch Wednesday, MLB.com reports.
- suspensionJohan Rojas CF — Rojas (shoulder) is starting in center field and batting leadoff in Thursday's Grapefruit League contest against Atlanta, Lochlahn March of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.
- Day-To-DayDaulton Varsho CF — Varsho (wrist) is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Phillies.
- Day-To-DayGeovanny Jesus Planchart C — no
- Day-To-DayChay Yeager RP — Yeager will undergo season-ending UCL surgery on his right elbow Wednesday, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.
- Day-To-DayCJ Stubbs C — The Blue Jays signed Stubbs to a minor-league contract Friday that includes an invitation to spring training.
- Day-To-DayJaven Coleman P — no
- 10-Day-ILAddison Barger RF — Blue Jays manager John Schneider said Monday that Barger (elbow) is "making progress" while continuing to ramp up his hitting at the team's complex in Florida, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca reports.
- 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.
- 15-Day-ILDylan Cease SP — Cease (hamstring) will rejoin the Blue Jays' rotation Tuesday with a start against the Phillies, Mitch Bannon of The Athletic reports.
One thing to track late: Toronto's bullpen has been carrying real water with Garcia, Mantiply, and Estrada all on the 60-day. If Cease is on a pitch count — and he almost certainly is coming off the IL — the Jays may be asking their relievers to navigate the heart of a Phillies order that has scored 28 runs over its last 4 wins. That's a heavy ask on a Tuesday.
Give me Wheeler and the run line, but the smarter ticket is probably the Phillies team total over. Either way, Toronto needs Cease to look like himself or this series gets ugly in a hurry.