Tillman to face Stroman in AL wild-card game

The wild card game is a relatively new phenomenon in the Major League Baseball, with only four years behind it, and the Blue Jays will get their first taste of the format against a team that has matched them step-for-step the entire season.

“In one game anything can happen – we have seen strokes of brilliance from Stroman and we have seen the opposite”, he said.

What’s next: Whether it’s the Blue Jays or the Orioles who come out on top Tuesday, the next opponent will be the Texas Rangers, who await the wild-card victor after posting the best record in the AL with 95 wins and 67 losses.

They’re also asking anyone who may be getting dropped off or picked up, to do so on Front Street, east of Blue Jays Way.

Marcus Stroman will be pitching for the Blue Jays.

But are the Giants the same kind of team that went from wild-card winners to World Series champs two years ago?

Orioles top hitters: 3B Manny Machado (.294, 37 HR, 96 RBIs); RF Mark Trumbo (.246, 47 HR, 108 RBIs); CF Adam Jones (.265, 29 HR, 83 RBIs); 1B Chris Davis (.221, 38 HR, 84 RBIs); 2B Jonathan Schoop (.267, 25 HR, 82 RBIs); C Matt Wieters (.243, 17 HR, 66 RBIs). He took the loss against the Orioles on Thursday when he allowed four runs, nine hits and two walks while striking out three in seven-plus innings.

The odds: The website FiveThirtyEight give the Blue Jays a 56% chance of beating the Orioles on Tuesday night to advance to the ALDS. Even the injury-prone Troy Tulowitzki survived his annual DL stint and is ready to play in the postseason.

Another factor that will play a key role? Tillman is 5-10 with a 5.44 ERA in 24 career starts against the Blue Jays.

According to a new Ipsos poll conducted for Global News, 35 per cent of Jays fans believe the team will win the American League Championship Series (ALCS) and make it to the World Series – however, 16 per cent think the team will be eliminated in the ALCS like previous year.

Stroman and Liriano have experienced their ups and downs, of course. He has a 4.37 ERA this season and a 1.29 WHIP, slightly worse than in the past. Tillman shaved more than a run off last year’s ERA (4.99) this season (3.77), and put together a respectable campaign tag-teaming with Kevin Gausman atop the O’s rotation.

Out of the four games, two of them were played in Rogers Centre.

Jul 6, 2016; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Marcus Stroman (6) reacts to striking out Kansas City Royals second baseman Whit Merrifield (15) to end the sixth inning at Rogers Centre.

For the fans who are just looking for a place to watch the game, the big screen will be set up for the public to watch, for free, in Nathan Phillips Square. Toronto ranks No. 2 in all of baseball – behind only the Chicago Cubs – in this category. This doesn’t even include Justin Smoak and Michael Saunders, who are average at the very least.

The Toronto Blue Jays’ offense was a thing of beauty in 2015.

The Orioles hit 55 home runs in August, tying the major league record for homers in August, just two months after setting the June record with 56.

Aside from Britton, the Orioles are heavy on quality right-handed relievers-Brad Brach, Darren O’Day, Mychal Givens and Vance Worley-an asset against the right-handed power of Toronto’s Donaldson, Bautista and Encarnacion. They might have gotten very lucky this season.

Stroman, who has conceded 21 homers on the season, will be tested by the Orioles’ huge sluggers, who led the league in home runs (253).

Toronto has chose to hand the ball to the high energy Marcus Stroman for the first of hopefully man playoff games this season.

With wild-card game experience – Liriano started and got the win in the Pittsburgh Pirates’ win over the Cincinnati Reds in 2013 – the left-hander says he’ll be ready whenever Gibbons calls. “Big game, good time for Jose to be out there to do something big”.

Statistics courtesy of ESPN and Baseball-Reference.