The Blue Jays will be trying to slam their rivals from the other league on Thursday, as the Pittsburgh Pirates visit in inter-league play at Rogers Centre.

It's a pitching duel between Brett Cecil for the Blue Jays (1-2 on the year) and Jeff Karstens for Pittsburgh (4-3 so far).



View Pittsburgh vs Toronto Odds and Stats.

Betting Line:
On the Sportsbook MLB line for this matchup, Toronto sat as -115 favorites. The total was set at 8.5.

Power Rankings:
According to new MLB Power Rankings here, it's the American League No. 5-ranked Blue Jays and the National League No. 13-rated Pirates in this matchup.



How They Match Up:
Offensively, the game matches up Toronto's No. 5 ranked American League offense (4.5 runs per game) against a Pirates defense and pitching staff that sits at No. 6 in the National League at 3.9 runs allowed per game. The Blue Jays have been averaging 8.7 hits per game, more than the Pirates have managed so far this season (8 hits on average).

Pitching and defensive stats are important baseball handicapping factors and Toronto has the American League's No. 10-ranked defense. In the other dugout, the Pirates own the National League's No. 6 mark in runs allowed.

The Pirates were a 2-1 loser in their most recent outing on the road against the Blue Jays. That made Sportsbooks of bettors who got Toronto at -185 on the moneyline, while the total score (3) was good news for UNDER bettors. The Pirates endured a 2-1 loss at the hands of the Blue Jays on Wednesday, with Paul Maholm throwing 7 innings of 9-hit ball at Rogers Centre.




Pittsburgh Pirates Trends:
When playing on Thursday are 3-7
Before playing Washington are 2-8
After playing Toronto are 2-5
After a loss are 6-4

Toronto Blue Jays Trends:
When playing on Thursday are 6-4
Before playing Philadelphia are 6-4
After playing Pittsburgh are 6-1
After a win are 5-5

A few Pirates at Blue Jays trends to consider:
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Pittsburgh's last 5 games on the road
Pittsburgh is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games
Pittsburgh is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games on the road
Pittsburgh is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Toronto
Toronto is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Pittsburgh
The total has gone UNDER in 11 of Toronto's last 14 games
The total has gone OVER in 9 of Toronto's last 13 games at home
Toronto is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games


Next up:
Pittsburgh at Washington, Friday, July 1
Toronto home to Philadelphia, Friday, July 1