GDB 26.0: Alek Manoah, Toronto Blue Jays look to exact revenge against Seattle Mariners in series opener

Photo credit: © John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports
By Zach Laing
Apr 28, 2023, 12:00 EDTUpdated: Apr 29, 2023, 12:53 EDT
It’ll be an interesting night in Toronto as the Jays play host to the Seattle Mariners for the first time since they were eliminated in the playoffs last season.
We all won’t soon forget the tough two game set the Jays had that included a massive collapse in game two. But tonight, Alek Manoah will lead the Jays to battle looking to exact revenge.
Both teams have some new looks to their lineup this season, including some moves that saw the Jays send Teoscar Hernandez to the Mariners for reliever Erik Swanson and Adam Macko. Swanson has been rock solid for the Jays, and Hernandez has been struggling to find his way, despite posting a 0.5 bWAR to this point in the season.
Manoah’s season has quickly turned around in his last few starts and given how much of a competitor he is, it wouldn’t surprise me to see him fired up for this game tonight.
First pitch: 7:07 p.m. EST
Weather: 11C. Light rain. The dome will be closed. (RotoGrinders)
The teams:
Toronto Blue Jays: 16-9, 4.5 GB, +1.5 WCGB. +14 DIFF, 4.80 R/G.
Seattle Mariners: 11-14, 3.0 GB, 3.5 WCGB. +1 DIFF, 4.32 R/G.
Moneyline: TOR -108; SEA +100.
Starting pitchers:
TOR: Alek Manoah RHP — 1-1, 5.13 ERA, 1.557 WHIP, 7.2 K9, -0.1 bWAR.
SEA: Luis Castillo RHP — 2-0, 1.52 ERA, 0.809 WHIP, 10.3 K9, 1.2 bWAR.
Lineups:
Toronto
- G Springer (R) RF
- B Bichette (R) SS
- V Guerrero Jr. (R) 1B
- M Chapman (R) 3B
- D Varsho (L) LF
- A Kirk (R) C
- B Belt (L) DH
- W Merrifield (R) 2B
- K Kiermaier (L) CF
Seattle
- J Rodríguez (R) CF
- T France (R) 1B
- J Kelenic (L) LF
- E Suárez (R) DH
- T Hernández (R) RF
- C Raleigh (S) C
- J Crawford (L) SS
- J Caballero (R) 3B
- K Wong (L) 2B
Need to bide the time until first pitch?
Tune into the latest edition of Blue Jays Nation Radio as the crew talks about the Jays’ latest series against the Chicago White Sox.
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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