Toronto Blue Jays (0-0) vs Texas Rangers (0-0)
Game Info: Friday, April 8, 2022 at 7:07 pm (Rogers Centre)
Jose Berrios (0-0) (0.00) vs Jon Gray (0-0) (0.00)
Betting Odds: Toronto Blue Jays -169 / Texas Rangers +137 --- Over/Under: 9.5 Click Here for the Latest Odds
The Texas Rangers will visit the Toronto Blue Jays in an opening day matchup in the American League West division matchup from Rogers Centre Stadium on Friday Afternoon. The weather is expected to be humid with a high chance of rain.
Toronto disappointed many last year as they missed the postseason, but are expected to go deep this year. Toronto went 91-71 overall and 47-34 in home games last season. The Blue Jays averaged 9.0 hits per game last season while batting a collective .266 and slugging .466.
The Blue Jays made a big splash in free agency by signing right-hander José Berríos to a seven-year, $131 million extension. Kevin Gausman signed a five-year, $110 million deal in free agency.
Jose Berrios is slated to be the Opening Day starter. Last season he was 12-9 with an ERA of 3.52, a .1.06 Whip and 204 strikes.
The expectations for the Texas Rangers are higher this season after they finished at the bottom of nearly every offensive category. They have added Corey Seager and Marcus Semien which should help this team a ton in terms of Offense. Texas went 60-102 overall and 24-57 on the road last season. The Rangers pitching staff had a collective 4.79 ERA while averaging 7.8 strikeouts per nine innings in the 2021 season.
Jon Gray is the Opening Day starter and last season he was 8-12 with an ERA of 4.59 a 1.33 whip and 157 strikes.
The Blue Jays are 4-0 in their last 4 vs. American League Wet and are 4-0 in their last 4 games vs. a starter with a WHIP less than 1.15. The Blue Jays are also 4-1 in their last 5 games on astroturf. The Rangers are 6-20 in their last 26 Friday games and are 3-12 in their last 15 vs. American League East.
The Rangers are 1-6 in the last 7 meetings in Toronto, but I'm not sure that hold here. The Blue Jays should get the win here as they are debuting Berrios with high hopes to start the season. It should take awhile for the Rangers to get things going with the new additions at bat.