Rangers-Blue Jays: Position-by-position ALDS look

Congratulations, Blue Jays. You beat the Orioles in a stunning 5-2 extra inning walk-off in the American League Wild Card Game on Tuesday, and your reward for that is… a trip to Texas to face the AL’s No. 1 seed, in a rematch of last year’s most entertaining postseason matchup. Game 1 of the ALDS is Thursday at 4:30 p.m. ET/3:30 p.m. CT on TBS and Sportsnet.

We know what you’re thinking, of course. You’re thinking about Jose Bautista’s bat flip, and you’re thinking about Bautista vs. Rougned Odor, and that’s all understandable. There are a lot of reasons why this series is so highly anticipated. But do remember that at the end of the day, all that matters is who wins to face either Boston or Cleveland with a trip to the World Series on the line.

That being the case, let’s let’s go position-by-position for strengths and weaknesses between the Rangers and Blue Jays.

CatcherJonathan Lucroy (.276/.345/.539, 131 Weighted Runs Created Plus, where 100 is league average) gave the Rangers everything they hoped for and more after being acquired from Milwaukee, replacing the decent-but-not-great performances of Robinson Chirinos (.224/.314/.483, 108 wRC+) and friends. Lucroy even reportedly helped Yu Darvish simplify his pitch mixture, to great effect. Russell Martin (99 wRC+) has been solid for years, but he can’t really compete with Lucroy’s bat, though a very good second half (122 wRC+) was much better than a brutal first half (77 wRC+).Advantage: Rangers

First baseEdwin Encarnacion put up a typically productive (and underrated season), with 42 homers and a 134 wRC+, which is the seventh-best of any qualified first baseman, and while one huge postseason walk-off homer shouldn’t meaningfully change opinions about him, it sure doesn’t hurt. Meanwhile, Mitch Moreland (.233/.298/.422, 87 wRC+) has some pop (22 homers), but put up his third below-average offensive season in the past four; he’ll likely start against righties and sit in favor of Ryan Rua (.258/.331/.400, 93 wRC+) against lefties.Big advantage: Blue Jays

Second base There’s likely to be some disagreement from Texas fans on how valuable Odor is, because while he showed excellent power for a second baseman (33 homers), his complete refusal to walk and below-average defense (-9 Defensive Runs Saved, tied for lowest among second basemen) comes out to a player who was about average on offense (.271/.296/.502, 106 wRC+) and overall (2.1 Wins Above Replacement, tied for 14th among second basemen). Devon Travis, meanwhile, made a successful return from serious shoulder surgery to hit .300/.332/.454, with better on-base skills and less power that made him roughly as valuable on offense (109 wRC+) as Odor. Still, it’s rare to find 30-plus homers from a middle infielder.Small advantage: Rangers

Shortstop After three straight disappointing seasons, Elvis Andrus had a surprising career year in 2016, hitting .302/.362/.439 (112 wRC+) while stealing 20 or more bases …

continue reading in source mlb.mlb.com