The Texas Rangers and the Toronto Blue Jays will clash in Game 1 of their American League Division Series (ALDS) on Thursday night as both teams look to get their noses in front early on in what should be an enthralling series between the two. The game has a scheduled start time of 4.38 p.m. ET and takes place from Globe Life Park in Texas. The game can be watched on TV on the TBS or TSN networks, and also can be watched online through live stream via the link below.
Much of the talk ahead of this game has been grumbling among the Rangers fans who were disappointed with the MLB scheduling of their home games. Today's Thursday game has been issued a local start time of 3.38 p.m., which is less than ideal for workers to get to watch the game. On Friday, things get even worse as an earlier noon start has been given, blocking a large majority of fans from catching any of the game.
That has led to fans taking to social media to express their dismay at being apparently snubbed by the MLB when they arranged the postseason schedule.
However, some have been able to see the up side, as earlier starts for weekday games obviously sees less demand for tickets. That has meant many fans are having to sell their seats for more reasonable prices on dealer websites, allowing many who potentially would have been unable to get affordable tickets now able to experience Playoff baseball.
Today's game will see Cole Hamels start on the mound for the Rangers. He comes into the postseason with a 15-5 record through the regular season, boasting a 3.32 ERA during the season so far.
However, Hamels has not lined up against the Blue Jays since the 2015 ALDS, and he has struggled against Toronto in his past encounters. He is 0-2 with a poor 6.97 ERA in four regular season starts against the Blue Jays, and is 0-1 with a 2.70 ERA in two ALDS starts. Overall in the postseason for Hamels, he has a 7-5 record with a 3.03 ERA in 15 Playoff games.
Opposite him today will be Marco Estrada, who went 9-9 through the regular season with a 3.48 ERA. His figures are slightly skewered by a run of poor form during mid August through to mid September when he posted a poor 6.95 ERA in his seven starts during that period. However, he has rediscovered his form somewhat, allowing just two runs on nine hits through 19 innings in his past three games. Over that time he has also managed 19 strikeouts. So he should be in confident mood coming into this game against the Rangers.
This will be the second consecutive year that these two teams have met in the ALDS, and they are sure to be as competitive as ever after some high-tempered encounters over recent years.
Blue Jays outfielder Jose Bautista, who has had his fair share of heated moments against the Rangers, has said ahead of the game: "We are looking forward to it, no matter what the opponent is. Everybody knows what happened this year. ... Hopefully we can put them out of the playoffs."
The Rangers should be favorites to win this series, having posted the best record in the AL this year at 95-67. However, Toronto should be in good spirits having come through a morale-boosting 11th inning Wild Card walk off home run win against the Baltimore Orioles on Tuesday night.
Today's big ALDS Game 1 match up between the Texas Rangers and the Toronto Blue Jays has a scheduled start time of 4.38 p.m. ET and can be watched on TV on the TBS or TSN networks, and also can be watched online through live stream by clicking here.
