Blue Jays face Yankees for most hyped series in years

Aug 4, 2015; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Marco Estrada (25) knuckles with acting manager DeMarlo Hale (16) as he prepares to leave the game against Minnesota Twins in the seventh inning at Rogers Centre. Estrada was the winning pitcher in a 3-1 win for the Jays. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports

Game 3: Sunday, August 8th  –  1:05 ET
Marco Estrada (9-6, 3.40) vs. Masahiro Tanaka (8-4, 3.84)

The Blue Jays wrap up this weekend series on Sunday before an off-day Monday, and send the quietly incredible changeup guru Marco Estrada to the mound. Estrada has been working extremely well with Dioner Navarro behind the dish, and we could see the same pairing to give Russell Martin a full two days off heading into their series against Oakland at home.

Estrada has won three of his past four starts, and outside of one dud, he’s been fantastic for the Blue Jays over the past two months. With his ERA down to 3.40 and WHIP now sitting at 1.11, he’s far more than we ever could have expected from the Adam Lind trade. In his last outing against the Minnesota Twins, Estrada allowed just one earned run on two hits over 6.2 strong innings.

New York will close up the series with Tanaka, who has overcome injury concerns earlier in the season to have a very impressive season of his own. It’s been some time since Tanaka dominated in one of his starts, but he’s remained consistent and should be a safe bet to work at least six innings of quality ball.

Next: Blue Jays contracts and control: 2016

More from Jays Journal

• Blue Jays: The goalposts are moving in the right direction
• Single-A Dunedin Blue Jays advance to the Championship Series
• Blue Jays: Comparisons for Alek Manoah’s Second Season
• Blue Jays: Adam Cimber, the unlikely decision King
• Toronto Blue Jays: Has the Shift Killed Kevin Gausman’s 2022 Cy Young Hopes?