George Springer gives John Schneider a new look atop Toronto's lineup this afternoon, with Daulton Varsho out against Baltimore.
Springer stays at designated hitter, Nathan Lukes remains in right field, and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. holds the 3 spot at first base. The biggest shift near the top is Jesús Sánchez moving into cleanup.
Behind them, Ernie Clement hits 5th at second base, Brandon Valenzuela catches in the 6 hole, Kazuma Okamoto bats 7th at third, Andrés Giménez is 8th at shortstop, and Myles Straw rounds it out in center.
That card says plenty about what Toronto is chasing. The Blue Jays are 30-34, the Orioles are 31-33, and this series still feels tight enough to change tone in a hurry.
The matchup on the mound adds to that pressure. Baltimore is sending Kyle Bradish, who comes in 3-6 with a 3.44 ERA and 65 strikeouts.
Toronto's side is a little less standard. Braydon Fisher gets the opening assignment, with recent reporting pointing to more of an opener look than a full traditional start.
That makes the lineup choice stand out even more. Schneider is not only patching together innings today, he is also asking this order to create traffic earlier than it did Friday.
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Toronto's card changes without Daulton Varsho
This group does not look the same as the one Toronto posted Friday night. Varsho hit cleanup in that game, and now Sánchez slides into that spot while Straw returns to center.
Springer leading off as the DH keeps one thing steady. Schneider is still using his veteran at the top, but the support around him has a different shape this time.
Lukes batting second also keeps a left-handed bat between Springer and Guerrero Jr. That spacing has become a real part of how Toronto is trying to build its early innings.
Sánchez hitting 4th is the bolder call. It puts a left-handed swing in the damage lane and asks him to replace at least part of the middle-order punch Varsho usually gives them.
Then the lineup gets thinner and more contact-based. Clement, Valenzuela, Giménez, and Straw are there to keep innings moving, not to carry the whole card by themselves.
That is why Guerrero Jr. and Sánchez feel like the hinge points this afternoon. Against Bradish, Toronto needs the top half to do more than just put the ball in play.
For Schneider, this lineup is less about surprise than response. The Blue Jays reshaped the card, kept Springer in front, and now need that new look to hit harder than the last one.
Should Jesús Sánchez stay in Toronto's cleanup spot?
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