Blue Jays at Royals
Toronto has cornered the market on drafting sons of former major leaguers and the kids are all right as the Blue Jays go for a three-game series sweep of the host Kansas City Royals on Wednesday afternoon. Shortstop Bo Bichette, son of Dante, recorded a single in his first major league at-bat Monday and followed that up by going 2-for-4 with a walk in Toronto's 9-2 victory Tuesday.
Blue Jays third baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (8-for-20, two home runs, 12 RBIs in his last four games after hitting a grand slam Tuesday) and second baseman Cavan Biggio, whose fathers Vladimir and Craig are Hall of Famers, made their debuts earlier this year and have combined to play 131 contests. Toronto has won three of four, marking the third time it's done so since winning three straight from April 26-28, while Kansas City has dropped five of its last six. Royals second baseman Whit Merrifield went 1-for-4 on Tuesday to extend his franchise-record streak without back-to-back hitless games to 132 - the third longest run in the American League since 1946, trailing Ron LeFlore (1978-79) by one and well behind Ichiro Suzuki (180 in 2008-09). Kansas City's Jakob Junis takes the ball Wednesday and is coming off a rough start after three straight quality ones, and opposes rookie Jacob Waguespack, who continues to audition for a spot in the rotation.
TV: 1:15 p.m. ET, Sportsnet (Toronto), FS Kansas City
PITCHING MATCHUP: Blue Jays RH Jacob Waguespack (1-1, 5.63 ERA) vs. Royals RH Jakob Junis (6-9, 5.03)
Waguespack allowed three runs, six hits and three walks in five innings of a 3-1 loss to Tampa Bay on Friday. The 25-year-old Texan has yielded at least three runs in all five of his career outings - three starts - and has a 1.54 WHIP and .306 batting average against. Waguespack, who has 22 strikeouts in 24 innings, has never faced Kansas City or any of its players.
Junis allowed six runs and 10 hits with five strikeouts in six innings of an 8-3 loss to Cleveland on Friday. The 26-year-old Illinois native was 2-0 with a 1.35 ERA in his previous three turns, including a 1-0 victory over the Indians on July 20 when he yielded two hits and three walks while striking out seven in six innings. Junis is 1-0 with a 2.84 ERA in two games versus Toronto with both starts occurring in his rookie season of 2017.
WALK-OFFS
1. The Blue Jays on Tuesday traded RHP David Phelps to the Chicago Cubs for RHP prospect Thomas Hatch and cash considerations.
2. Royals DH Jorge Soler went 2-for-5 on Tuesday to extend his career-best on-base streak to 26 games - the longest active run in the majors. Soler is batting .311 during the streak, raising his average 18 points to .248.
3. Toronto has clinched its first series victory at Kauffman Stadium since 2013.