Cristopher Sánchez, Zack Wheeler and Jesus Luzardo are the expected starters for an early-week matchup against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Center in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Sánchez toes the road rubber, looking to embark on another extended scoreless streak after an MLB left-handed record 50 ⅔ innings stretch was stopped during his last outing. Toronto’s hitters square off against Philadelphia’s best starting pitchers in the series as Philly looks to keep the good times rolling under interim manager Don Mattingly.
Who: Philadelphia Phillies (35-30) @ Toronto Blue Jays (32-34)
When: Mon., June 8, 7:07 p.m.; Tues., June 9, 7:07 p.m.; Wed., June 10, 7:07 p.m.
Where: Rogers Center (Toronto, Canada)
Monday: Cristopher Sánchez (7-2, 1.46 ERA) vs. Patrick Corbin (2-2, 3.98 ERA)
Tuesday: Zack Wheeler (5-1, 2.31 ERA) vs. TBD
Wednesday: Jesus Luzardo (4-4, 4.56 ERA) vs. TBD
Brandon Marsh, a viable candidate for a spot in the 2026 MLB All-Star Game, brings a league-leading .338 batting average into the series against Toronto after an excellent three-game set against the Chicago White Sox this weekend.
The 28-year-old outfielder was 5-for-12 with three home runs and five RBIs as the Phillies took two games from the White Sox at Citizens Bank Park. Marsh has started the month of June on fire with a base hit in each of the month's first six games, leading to a .500 batting average (12-for-24). He has recorded a double, three home runs, six RBIs and a stolen base. There is a ton of competition in the National League outfield scene, but there is little reason the Phillies outfielder cannot steal a spot this summer.
Kyle Schwarber enters with an MLB-leading 23 home runs for the Phillies this season, a six-round-tripper lead over Colorado’s Hunter Goodman and Atlanta’s Matt Olson. Bryce Harper’s 14 home runs put him in a sixth-place tie in the N.L., while “The Showman’s” 37 RBIs sit inside the top 20. Both players can present logical arguments to appear as N.L. All-Stars next month at Citizens Bank Park.
Toronto enters the series following back-to-back wins over Baltimore this weekend, but the Blue Jays feature a 5-5 record over their last 10 games. Infielder Ernie Clement has been a dangerous hitter for Toronto with an American League-leading 77 hits, producing a .306 batting average. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has swung the bat well (.287 avg.), but has featured a shocking lack of power with only three home runs following four-straight 20+ homer seasons.
Patrick Corbin is the only announced starter for the series as of press time. The Blue Jays have their other premier starters (Trey Yesavage and Kyle Gausman) lined up for an A.L. East battle against the New York Yankees, which follows this series. They could see one of their many injured starters return to take the mound in one of the other two games against Philly, but nothing has been announced as of this writing.
Toronto’s bullpen has the fourth-best unit in the A.L., with a 3.71 ERA over 284 innings. The Minnesota Twins (291 ⅓ innings) and the Tampa Bay Rays (290 ⅓ innings) are the only American League squads to lean on their bullpens more than Toronto this season. (Bullpen stats from insidethepen.com)
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