TORONTO -- For some pitchers trying to stop Josh Donaldson and the rest of the powerful Toronto Blue Jays, it's enough to take their breath away.
"You can't let up," Texas Rangers closer Shawn Tolleson said a day ahead of today's AL division series opener. "There's no getting past one guy and taking an exhale. Definitely, that poses its challenges. It's not an easy lineup to just pitch around one guy and get to the next."
AMERICAN LEAGUE DIVISION SERIES
Texas Rangers at Toronto Blue Jays
2:37 p.m. Central today, Fox Sports 1
MATCHUPS
The Blue Jays and Rangers have never played each other in the postseason. … Toronto has a slight 204-200 lead in the all-time regular-season series, but the Blue Jays have gone 17-11 over the past four seasons since Texas went to its last World Series. Toronto took two of three at home in June and two of three at Texas in August. … Blue Jays starter David Price has lost all three of his postseason starts against Texas, all for Tampa Bay, including the deciding Game 5 of the AL division series in 2010. In 11 regular-season starts against the Rangers, he is 3-4 with a 5.15 ERA, his highest against any AL opponent. … Yovani Gallardo won both of his starts this season against the Blue Jays, the only Texas victories against them. He threw 13 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing six hits while Toronto batted .136 against him.
BIG PICTURE
RANGERS With first-year Manager Jeff Banister, Texas is back in an AL division series for the first time since 2011, when it made its second consecutive World Series appearance. … The Rangers’ sixth AL West crown was clinched on the final day of the regular season, when they won their 10th consecutive game started by Cole Hamels. … Only four other MLB teams, one other in AL, also made the playoffs the year after having its league’s worst record. The Rangers lost 95 games in 2014. … Texas was 8-16 a month into this season, already 9 ½ games out of first, and still eight back on Aug. 1, after losing Hamels’ Texas debut after his trade from Philadelphia. … Except for one day tied for first place at 3-3 in the opening days of the season, Texas didn’t lead the division until a 6-5 victory over Houston on Sept. 15 in the 144th game of the season.
BLUE JAYS Toronto was 50-51 after losing to lowly Philadelphia on July 28, the same day General Manager Alex Anthopoulos acquired Troy Tulowitzki and LaTroy Hawkins from the Rockies. Two days later, Price arrived from Detroit, with Anthopoulos capping a busy trade deadline flurry by landing Ben Revere from the Phillies and Mark Lowe from the Mariners. The deals beefed up an already prolific offense, overhauled Toronto’s shaky bullpen, and added a true ace to the top of the rotation. The Blue Jays went 43-18 the rest of the way, undoing a seven-game deficit to overtake the Yankees and win the AL East. … Toronto ended the longest active playoff drought in the majors, a 22-year slump that stretched back to 1993 and the second of Toronto’s consecutive World Series titles. … Toronto led the majors with 891 runs, scoring 127 runs more than the next best offense, the Yankees, who had 764. Texas finished third in the majors with 751 runs.interception in Prescott’s 62-36 victory at Episcopal Collegiate. Also rushed for 78 yards on 14 carries.
Still, in their final series of the regular season, a four-game showdown against the Los Angeles Angels, the Rangers' pitching staff got something of a warm-up for facing the bashing Blue Jays.
"We talked about how you get [Mike] Trout and [Albert] Pujols out and you kind of take an exhale and then, before you know it, [C.J.] Cron hits a double off the wall or a home run," Tolleson said. "I think that kind of preparation is going to prepare us for this."
Good practice but Toronto's deep lineup will present even tougher challenges, with AL MVP candidate Donaldson followed by sluggers Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion. Catch your breath while you can, because shortstop Troy Tulowitzki and catcher Russell Martin aren't far behind.
"Our lineup is legit," Donaldson said. "One through nine, I feel like we have probably the best lineup in baseball."
Tolleson wasn't about to argue.
"It's probably going to be more challenging than it would be going up against another team," he said.
Toronto was the only big-league team to top 800 runs and outscored the Yankees, baseball's second-most prolific offense, by 127 runs. That's the biggest gap in the major leagues between the No. 1 and 2 offenses since 1953, according to STATS.
Texas finished third in the with 751 runs.
Toronto scored 10 or more runs 26 times this season, the most since St. Louis and Atlanta in 2003 -- the tail end of the Steroids Era.
"The consistency, that's what blows you away," Blue Jays pitcher R.A. Dickey said. "Every team probably has five or six games a year where they score 10 runs, but we have an offense that has generated a lot of runs in a lot of games. It's a pretty consistent baseline that you're seeing."
Besides their big run output, Toronto's also led the major leagues with 232 home runs, 852 RBI and 570 walks.
"That's a great group of hitters," Rangers Manager Jeff Banister said. "You've got to give them credit, you look at their numbers and what they've done, they speak for themselves."
Texas opens with right-hander Yovani Gallardo, who beat Toronto twice this season and didn't allow a run in 13 2/3 innings.
"I think we've come up with a good game plan, just being aggressive," Gallardo said. "Obviously they have a good lineup, a powerful lineup. With the catchers, we did a good job of making adjustments throughout the game whenever we had to."
Donaldson said Gallardo has become a different pitcher by improving his fastball command and adding a cutter to his arsenal.
"He's done a pretty good job of evolving himself into more of a complete pitcher," Donaldson said. "You have to take advantage of those mistakes that he's going to make, because he's not going to make a whole lot throughout the course of a game."
Toronto will start left-hander David Price, who went 9-1 with a 2.30 ERA in 11 starts after he was acquired from Detroit on July 30.
"He throws 98 with a couple of off-speed pitches. He hits his spots," Rangers designated hitter Prince Fielder said. "He doesn't mess around too much. He comes after hitters and he's not afraid of contact. He's a great pitcher, and it's going to be tough."
Price hasn't pitched since allowing five runs in five innings in a Sept. 26 start against Tampa Bay, an 11-day break between outings.
"If you can get these days off at this point in the season, that's good," said Price, who threw 220 1/3 innings during the regular season. "If you can come into the postseason with your body feeling the way I feel right now, that's a plus."
Sports on 10/08/2015