Toronto Blue Jays probable pitchers & starting lineups vs. Atlanta Braves, April 14

After a week filled with matchups against divisional rivals, the Toronto Blue Jays open a three-game series against the Atlanta Braves on Monday in their second interleague series of the year.

The Braves opened the season as a trendy World Series pick, but currently sit at just 4-11 on the year after they dropped their first seven games of the season.

On the other hand, the Blue Jays are coming off a 4-2 week and are first place in the American League East. While it's only April, the Blue Jays have proved they have a solid team that can win in a plethora of different ways.

The Braves are a good team (even if their record doesn't make it seem like it), so it'll be crucial for the Jays to kick them when they're down.

First pitch for today's game is at 7:07 p.m. at Rogers Centre. It will available on Sportsnet.

Probable starting pitchers

Easton Lucas (2-0, 0.00 ERA, 11 K) vs. Grant Holmes (0-1, 4.00 ERA, 11 K)

Is Easton Lucas the most important pitcher in the Blue Jays rotation?

After entering the season as a depth arm, Lucas earned a call-up after Max Scherzer's injury and has opened the season with two scoreless starts.

He ranks in the 92nd percentile in expected ERA and the 86th percentile in expected batting average, so it's becoming more and more clear that his strong start to the season isn't a fluke. He's only allowed five hits on the season (all singles) and has yet to allow multiple base hits on any of his pitches.

Not bad for a guy who had an MLB ERA above nine coming into the season.

He'll go against Holmes, who is coming off a start where he threw four scoreless innings against the Phillies. He opened the season in the bullpen but moved to the rotation and allowed four runs in four innings in his first start of the year.

He's gotten a bit lucky this year (expected ERA of 5.92), and he ranks in the bottom 15th percentile in barrel rate, walk rate and expected ERA. The Jays should have their work cut out for them.

Toronto Blue Jays starting lineup, April 14

• 1. SS Bo Bichette
• 2. 1B Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
• 3. DH Anthony Santander
• 4. 2B Andrés Giménez
• 5. 3B Ernie Clement
• 6. LF Alan Roden
• 7. CF Myles Straw
• 8. RF Nathan Lukes
• 9. C Tyler Heineman

The Blue Jays are running with the same top four hitters in their lineup that they've had for most of the season. Bichette's been great as a leadoff hitter, while Guerrero and Santander are beginning to heat up after slow starts.

Giménez is in a bit of a slump after a hot start to the season, but it's encouraging to still see him hitting cleanup. He'll be in front of Clement (who is coming off a three-hit game), whle the bottom of the order is four players who were invovled in some kind of roster battle in spring training.

Straw and Heineman have been great table-setters at the bottom of the lineup, while Roden and Lukes are working through some struggles. Still, it'll be interesting to see if they'll be able to get anything going against a struggling Braves squad.