Rangers recap: Blue Jays stay alive, 5-1

Down two games to none in their ALDS matchup against the Texas Rangers, things look bleak for the Toronto Blue Jays as they attempt to win a playoff series in their first appearance in the postseason since 1993. The lack of knuckleballers in the majors makes them unfamiliar at best. Tons of treatment to be honest with you.

“I think that success is a lot more sweet when you kind of go through hardship like we did the first couple years that I was up here”, Keuchel said. That’s just not going to cut it. His previous postseason hit came in the first inning of Game 7 of the 2011 World Series….

Estrada allowed the lone Texas run off five hits through 6.1-innings of nearly picture-perfect work to get the win and bring the Blue Jays back into the series. He took a 1-0 lead into the fifth inning, but surrendered a two-run single to Astros catcher Jason Castro. “It will really be sad for me but I’ve enjoyed every minute up until this moment”. The move paid off when he collected a bases-loaded walk in the fourth inning that put Toronto up 2-0. He missed most of the final three weeks of the regular season because of a cracked shoulder blade and bruised muscles in his upper back.

Rougned Odor has tilted the series in Texas’ favour a couple of times, and along with neutralizing his impact, the Jays will need one of their own to step above the crowd and into a starring role.

On the other side, Texas will start Derek Holland, a lefthander with a 4.91 ERA who will be challenged by Toronto’s right-handed power hitters.

The right-hander said he tried to block out the notion heading into the contest that a loss would end Toronto’s season.

“We’ve been in this situation before”.

“It’s extremely special for him”, Rangers first-year manager Jeff Banister said.

“Hopefully we bounce back tomorrow and have another good game”, said Gibbons.

R.A. Dickey was with the Texas Rangers when he started to develop his knuckleball, with a few disastrous early results. “Mitch Moreland did the same tonight”.

“He had not found the barrel until that point”, Banister said. It worked, although they wasted a slew of chances leading up to Tulowitzki’s homer.

Tulowitzki posted mediocre offensive numbers but was a big defensive upgrade for the Blue Jays after they acquired him in a blockbuster deal with the Colorado Rockies at the trade deadline.

Very quietly, Marco Estrada, one of the least-heralded players on the Blue Jays roster, dominated the Rangers lineup with a deceptive fastball and devastating off-speed pitches. Diekman threw just 44 pitches in his four frames, 32 of them strikes.

Whoever thought the Texas Rangers would be coming back to Arlington up 2-0 over the sizzling hot Toronto Blue Jays in the ALDS?

However, Navarro grounded into a double play and Perez once against escaped.

“We were in real good position all night long”.

Gibbons said Dickey will go as planned.