Toronto Blue Jays vs. Texas Rangers ALDS Game 4 Preview, TV Schedule, Prediction

By Jason Fletcher
Toronto Blue Jays vs. Texas Rangers ALDS Game 4 Preview, TV Schedule, Prediction
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TV Schedule: Monday, October 12, 4:07 p.m. ET on Fox Sports 1

Location: Globe Life Park in Arlington, Arlington, Texas

Line: Toronto (-125)

The Toronto Blue Jays kept the season alive last night with a 5-1 win over the Texas Rangers in Game 3 of the best-of-five ALDS. While the Rangers still hold a 2-1 lead in the series, last night’s victory could give the Blue Jays the momentum the team needs to turn things around. But as they always say in the playoffs, your team is only as good as the next day’s starting pitcher. The Blue Jays will have R.A. Dickey on the mound, while the Rangers will send Derek Holland to the hill.

In Game 3, the offensive hero for the Blue Jays was Troy Tulowitzki, who went 2-for-3 with a home run and four RBIs. It was Tulowitzki’s first home run since he suffered a small crack in his shoulder blade from a collision with teammate Kevin Pillar in September. In order to come back and win this series, the Blue Jays will need Tulowitzki to stay hot. They also need Edwin Encarnacion and Jose Bautista to find their stroke.

Dickey is coming off of an impressive September where he went 2-1 in six starts and posted a 2.43 ERA. The key for the knuckleballer in that stretch was that he only allowed four walks in the entire month. Dickey gets into trouble when he can’t locate the knuckle-ball and is forced to throw more fastballs.

After returning from injury in August, Holland has had a terrible stretch run. He’s 4-3 with a 4.91 ERA and 1.30 WHIP in 10 starts in 2015. It wouldn’t be surprising to see the Rangers go to the bullpen early if Holland struggles.

The fact that the Rangers hold a 2-1 series lead is rather impressive considering the only hitter to have an average above .300 in the series is Delino DeShields Jr.. What a find the Rule 5 draft selection has been this season. In the playoffs, he has a .400 batting average with two doubles, three runs scored and two RBIs. Unfortunately for the Rangers, I don’t see them putting the Blue Jays away until someone else in the lineup steps up.

With the two starting pitchers on the mound and the lineups these two teams possess, this game has the potential to be extremely high-scoring. If that’s the case, I’ll give the edge to the Blue Jays, who have the best offense in MLB by far.

Prediction: Toronto 9, Rangers 6

Jason Fletcher is a Senior Writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @JasonFletcher25, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google+.

 

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