Toronto At Texas ALDS MLB Winning Favorites

That went about as bad as any Ranger fan would have thought, huh? Playing at home with extra rest and high hopes of dispatching the Toronto Blue Jays, everything went the exact opposite for the Texas Rangers, as Marco Estrada and the visiting Blue Jays blasted the hosts in a dominant 10-1 victory. This, mind you, included scoring seven runs off AL Cy Young candidate Cole Hamels. Up next against the red-hot Blue Jays is Yu Darvish (7-5 with a 3.41 ERA), who’ll be making his first-ever start against Toronto this season. Toronto will be countering with their 20-game winner J.A. Happ (20-4, 3.18 ERA). Can the Rangers hold serve at home or will the Blue Jays improve to 2-0? Below we serve you an MLB odds preview of this playoffs clash.

In Depth Analysis On The Blue Jays At Rangers ALDS MLB Winning Favorites

Where: Globe Life Park in Arlington, Arlington, TX When: Friday, October 7, 1:00 PM ET TV Broadcast: TBS Writer’s Pick: Toronto (+115), Texas (-135), OVER/UNDER 8.5    

Why Toronto Will Win

After taking down the power-hitting Baltimore Orioles in the wild-card games and then clobbering the Rangers on Thursday, you’d better start believing that the Blue Jays are for real and are primed to go deep into this year’s playoffs, at least on paper. Toronto Blue Jays‘ offense has been doing its job all season, and there’s no reason to expect anything different after coming through with timely run-support to its pitching staff so far in the playoffs. Meanwhile, having the calming presence of Happ on the mound should almost guarantee a strong show. Happ not only had a strong finish to the season, but he’s also played very well against the Rangers in the past, including a one-run ball on seven innings when he led the Blue Jays to a 12-2 smashing over Texas in May.

Why Texas Will Win

When not struggling with injuries, Darvish can be as dangerous as any elite pitcher on the mound. Darvish was limited to 17 starts this season, but he still put up above-average numbers, including a 6-2 mark with a 4.26 ERA in 10 home starts. The Japanese star did not, however, make a start against Toronto this season, so it’s hard to predict how he’ll fare against them this Friday. But if he can bring his best stuff–as he tends to do on big occasions–and get better support from Texas’ offense that finished #7 in the regular season in runs scored, the Rangers could be in for a winning show.

Expert MLB Playoffs Predictions and Picks

The Blue Jays are playing good offense and great defense, which is bound to trouble the iffy Darvish and the out-of-sorts offense that struggled mightily on Thursday Night. Give me Toronto for a second-straight win over Texas, and scoop the value in the run-line while you are at it.

Final Predicted Score: Toronto 6, Texas 3

Writer’s Pick: Toronto