This afternoon, a .500 team with rookie Mark Hendrickson on the hill takes on a playoff contender led by Tim Hudson. It would be an even bigger upset than last night if the Jays can pull it off.
Hudson was spectacular in a duel against Pedro Martinez in his latest, shutting out the Red Sox on two hits. The league is hitting .176 off him since the break. Although he's 6-1, 2.64 in nine career starts against Toronto, he's had trouble with Carlos Delgado (8-for-20 with 4 HR) who is the DH today, with Dave Berg (3-for-6 with a homer off Hudson) getting the surprise start at first base. Josh Phelps and Bobby Kielty are still fastened securely to the bench. Frank Catalanotto (300/400/500 in his last 10 games) is seeing the ball much better and returns to the 2-hole, with Eric Hinske (280/351/560 for August) now hitting fifth.
The Jays have begun a very tough road trip 3-2, which could have been 4-1 if they had supported Doc with a timely hit or two in Seattle. The bullpen is beginning to stabilize, with Cliff Politte, who was sharp again last night, setting up the closing platoon of Lopez and Miller. If Lurch can duplicate his most recent fine showing, when he held the M's to two runs in 6.2 IP, this could be an exciting, low-scoring affair.
https://www.battersbox.ca/article.php?story=20030816032641999