Toronto Blue Jays set for divisional clash with Rays

May 25, 2015; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Drew Hutchison (36) celebrates with center fielder Kevin Pillar (11) after defeating the Chicago White Sox 6-0 at Rogers Centre. Mandatory Credit: Nick Turchiaro-USA TODAY Sports

Game 1:  Monday, June 22nd   –   7:10 ET

Drew Hutchison vs. Matt Andriese

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before, but Drew Hutchison has been yo-yoing between great starts and disasters over the past month.  He’ll now look to buck that trend and continue to build from a relatively strong start against the New York Mets last week, where he picked up the win while pitching 5.2 shutout innings.

Hutchison’s 6-1 record hides his troubling 5.33 ERA and 1.38 WHIP.  It will continue to be about fastball aggression and control for Hutchison, as his breaking pitches have left his hand flat during several of his recent starts.  This has put a cap on his ability to chase strikeouts early in the count, and has limited Hutchison to 5 Ks or fewer in each of his past four starts.

Matt Andriese will counter for the Rays and has picked up the win in each of his last two outings.  Andriese remains somewhat of a swingman, however, and his maximum outing of 5.2 innings in 2015 may allow for the Blue Jays to break into Tampa’s bullpen early and level the playing field.

The 25-year old righty will sit just above 90 MPH with his fastball and just below with his two-seamer and cutter.  Andriese will also feature a slider that shows potential, and while he is not overpowering, he’s shown a tendency to pound the zone and avoid running into trouble with walks.

Next: Game 2: Dickey looks to find mid-season groove