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GDB 30.0: Blue Jays begin home series against Royals
Kansas City Royals Toronto Blue Jays
Photo credit: Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports
Zach Laing
Apr 29, 2024, 17:00 EDTUpdated: Apr 29, 2024, 17:30 EDT
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“The Kansas City Royals broke the Toronto Blue Jays” is not a sentence I ever thought I would utter.
Yet, here we are, a week after the Jays dropped three of four on the road in Kansas City, in what helped spark a franchise record 38-inning streak without holding a lead. Thankfully for the Jays, they were able to break out of that funk in the bottom of the second Sunday against the Dodgers, when a Daulton Varsho groundout sent Justin Turner home for a 1-0 lead.
And now, the Jays welcome the Royals to Toronto for a three-game set in which they look to exact revenge.
It kicks off tonight with Yariel Rodriguez taking the mound opposite of Jonathan Bowlan, a 27-year-old minor-leaguer who made his MLB debut last year, and makes his season debut tonight. The Jays bats will look to continue some of the success they saw Sunday against the Dodgers, and Rodriguez will look to rebound, too.
His last start came in game three against Kansas last week, in which he held his own allowing two earned runs off two walks and six hits.
First pitch:
1:37 p.m. EST. TV & Radio: Sportsnet.

Starting pitchers:

NameTeamGS
W
L
IP
ERA
ERA-
FIP
WHIP
K/9
BB/9
Yariel Rodriguez (2024)
TOR
3
0
1
11.2
3.86
101
4.12
1.54
11.57
3.86
Jonathan Bowlan (2023)
KCR
1
0
1
3.0
3.00
67
5.59
1.67
9.00
0.00

Teams:

– Data via Baseball-Reference

Lineups:

BLUE JAYS:
  1. G Springer (R) RF
  2. V Guerrero Jr. (R) 1B
  3. J Turner (R) DH
  4. D Varsho (L) CF
  5. D Jansen (R) C
  6. D Schneider (R) LF
  7. C Biggio (L) 2B
  8. I Kiner-Falefa (R) SS
  9. A Barger (L) 3B
ROYALS:
  1. M Garcia (R) 3B
  2. B Witt Jr. (R) SS
  3. V Pasquantino (L) 1B
  4. S Perez (R) C
  5. M Massey (L) 2B
  6. N Velázquez (R) DH
  7. M Melendez (L) LF
  8. H Renfroe (R) RF
  9. K Isbel (L) CF

Need to bide the time until first pitch?

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Zach Laing is the Nation Network’s news director and senior columnist. He can be followed on Twitter at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach@thenationnetwork.com.

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