No matter what happens this afternoon, the Toronto Blue Jays have won their series against the New York Mets.

It came in thanks to another great pitching performance from Jose Berrios Saturday afternoon in a 3-0 win that, coupled with an impressive 3-1 win Friday night, gave the Jays wins in two of three games.

This afternoon it’s Yusei Kikuchi taking the mound for the Jays as his Revenge Tour — which has stalled as of late — looks to get back on track. Truth be told, however, he’s going to have a tough matchup today.

Toronto comes in as the underdogs this afternoon as on paper this looks like a tough matchup for Kikuchi. The Mets have players in their lineup like Pete Alonso who can mash for power, but in the same breath, key players as of late like Mark Canha and Francisco Alvarez have struggled against lefties this season.

After Kikuchi posted a 5-0 record, a 3.00 ERA, and a 4.77 FIP while allowing just two walks per nine innings across 27.0 IP through his first five starts, his game has seen some regression. In his last six, he’s gone 3-3 with a 5.83 ERA, a 7.07 FIP while walking two times as many batters per nine.

As I wrote about yesterday, the strong point for the Jays this season in their rotation has been the middle of their order with Kevin Gausman, Chris Bassitt and Jose Berrios carrying the load.

Now, it’s time for Kikuchi and Alek Manoah’s game to settle down.

First pitch: 1:40 p.m. EST

Weather: 19C. “Winds in from left at 10-15mph (16-24 kmh) on a chilly day.” – RotoGrinders.

Toronto Blue Jays: 32-27, 8.5 GB, 2.5 WCGB, +29 DIFF.

New York Mets: 30-29, 4.5 GB, 1.0 WCGB, -10 DIFF.

Moneyline: TOR +118; NYM -139.

TOR: Yusei Kikuchi LHP — 6-2, 11 GS, 56.1 IP. 4.47 ERA, 5.97 FIP, 1.402 WHIP, 8.3 K/9, 0.2 bWAR.

NYM: Kodai Senga LHP — 5-3, 10 GS, 55.0 IP. 3.44 ERA, 3.85 FIP, 1.345 WHIP, 11.5 K/9, 1.0 bWAR.

Tune into the latest edition of Blue Jays Nation Radio as the crew talks about the Jays’ latest series against the Milwaukee Brewers.

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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