Toronto Blue Jays vs. Philadelphia Phillies: Double-header preview

Phillies and Blue Jays in similar positions

The Phillies come to Buffalo for a very short two-game series, as both games will be played on Thursday in a doubleheader format.

These are the make-up games from a couple of weeks ago that were cancelled due to two staff members of the Phillies’ organization testing positive for COVID-19. Thursday was supposed to be a scheduled off-day for the Jays, but as we’ve learned with teams around the league, those off-days will be limited due to the amount of rescheduled games.

The Phillies are 9-10 but right in the post-season picture in the NL East due to how weak the division has been. If you want an example of a team that knows how to swing the bat, this is it. Philadelphia is fifth in the league in batting average (.260), third in .OBP (.344), and second in slugging percentage (.463).

Philadelphia’s rotation is led by two stud starting pitchers Aaron Nola and Zack Wheeler. Wheeler is 3-0 with a 2.81 ERA. Nola is 2-1 with a 2.05 ERA and will be the second pitcher the Jays have the luxury of facing Thursday in the doubleheader. Rookie Spencer Howard will get the ball in Game 1 for the Phillies.

For Toronto, they’ll turn to Chase Anderson in Game 1. He’ll look to build on his first two outings of the season, where he only allowed one run over three innings each time out. His last outing was cut short due to weather, as the game was postponed until the next day.

Toronto hasn’t yet named a starter for Game 2. Matt Shoemaker would normally be the next in line, but because he pitched on Sunday, Trent Thornton should be making his long-awaited return from the injured list and it couldn’t come at a better time.