Matchups

Aaron Sanchez is giving the Toronto Blue Jays ample reason to second-guess their plan to shift him to the bullpen in an effort to manage his innings. Sanchez seeks to win his ninth consecutive decision and remain unbeaten since April 22 when the red-hot Blue Jays continue their four-game series against the visiting Detroit Tigers on Saturday.

Neither the Atlanta Braves nor the Chicago White Sox have provided much run support for their pitchers who will take the mound for Saturday’s middle game of the weekend series in the Windy City, so Atlanta’s Julio Teheran and Chicago’s Jose Quintana hope for help in their final starts before the All-Star break. Teheran receives the lowest run support among all qualified major-league starters (2.47 per start), while Quintana gets 2.88 per outing - the fourth-lowest in the game.

The Milwaukee Brewers will look to record a rare series victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Saturday afternoon, when the National League Central rivals play the second contest of their three-game set at Miller Park. St. Louis, which is 12-0-1 in its last 13 series with Milwaukee, stumbled out of the blocks and suffered a 4-3 setback on Friday for just its third loss in 10 encounters with the Brewers this season.

The Los Angeles Angels haven't been shy about flexing their muscle en route to winning four in a row for the third time this season. The Angels have outscored the opposition 34-13 during their current four-game winning streak and look to keep up the offense heading into the second contest of a three-game series with the host Baltimore Orioles on Saturday.

Right-hander Rick Porcello looks to continue his mastery at Fenway Park this season when the Boston Red Sox host the struggling Tampa Bay Rays in the middle contest of a three-game series on Saturday. Porcello is 7-0 in eight home starts at home after going 5-7 at Fenway last season and Boston hopes to win for the fifth time in six games following a 6-5 victory on Friday.

The Arizona Diamondbacks will have a new closer Saturday, when they continue their three-game series against the host San Francisco Giants. The Diamondbacks, who have fallen into last place in the National League West following an active offseason, traded closer Brad Ziegler to Boston shortly after Friday’s 6-2 loss in exchange for two minor-league prospects.

It might be too late for Jason Kipnis to qualify for this year's All-Star Game, but that hasn't kept the Cleveland Indians' second baseman from hitting like one against the New York Yankees. After accounting for three of his club's seven home runs through the first two contests of the Indians' four-game series with the Yankees, Kipnis will attempt to continue swinging a hot bat Saturday as the teams continue their series in Cleveland.

After guaranteeing themselves at worst a split of their 10-game homestand, the Houston Astros attempt to clinch a winning record when they host the Oakland Athletics on Saturday afternoon for the third contest of their four-game series. Houston improved to 5-3 on its stretch at home on Friday, rallying for a wild 10-9 victory in which Luis Valbuena belted a three-run homer in the bottom of the ninth after Oakland plated five in the top of the inning.

The Miami Marlins enjoyed a bit of home cookin' at the expense of a team that is getting eaten alive as it skids toward the All-Star break. After winning the series opener, Miami looks to further distance itself from a disastrous nine-game road trip when it plays the second contest of a three-game set versus the visiting Cincinnati Reds on Saturday.

The Seattle Mariners can earn at least a split of their four-game road series against the Kansas City Royals with a win Saturday – something they haven’t done in more than a month. After snapping a 10-game road skid, the Mariners look to make it two in a row when they send veteran Wade Miley to the mound.

The All-Star break can’t come soon enough for the Chicago Cubs, who have dropped eight of their last nine games heading into the second of a three-game road series against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Saturday. The second-place Pirates have pulled within 7 1/2 games of the Cubs following an 8-4 win in the series opener.

Brandon McCarthy looks to follow his successful season debut with another strong outing Saturday as the Los Angeles Dodgers continue their four-game series against the visiting San Diego Padres. McCarthy tossed five scoreless innings in last Sunday’s victory over Colorado and provided a much-needed boost to a Dodgers rotation that will be without ace Clayton Kershaw (back) for at least another few weeks.

The New York Mets received the news they were dreading, learning on Friday that right-hander Matt Harvey will undergo season-ending surgery to repair thoracic outlet syndrome. Scheduled to start Saturday's matchup against the visiting Washington Nationals, Harvey will be replaced by Logan Verrett in the third of a four-game set.

The Philadelphia Phillies appear to be rediscovering the form that allowed them to become one of the most surprising teams through mid-May, and rookie Tommy Joseph might be getting ready to keep it going this time around. The Phillies, who have won nine of 11, look to continue their unlikely offensive surge Saturday as they play the third of four games in Colorado against the Rockies.

The Texas Rangers finally managed to solve the visiting Minnesota Twins but they are in desperate need of a decent outing from their starting rotation when their four-game series continues Saturday. The Rangers evened the series with a 6-5 victory Friday night despite another abbreviated outing from their starting pitcher.