Blue Jays send Berrios to mound looking to bounce back vs. Diamondbacks – Sportsnet.ca

The Toronto Blue Jays will look to get back on track on Saturday in the second game of their weekend series against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Geraldo Perdomo hit a sacrifice fly in the ninth inning on Friday night to score the winning run for the Diamondbacks and help Arizona reach .500 for the first time since early April.

Looking to get Toronto back in the win column is Jose Berríos, who is coming off a no-decision where he had a season-best 10 strikeouts against the Seattle Mariners.

Unfortunately for Berríos, he has struggled to keep the ball in the park lately, surrendering a home run in seven consecutive starts.

The 30-year-old is 8-6 this season with a 3.76 ERA through 19 starts and has 12 quality starts. In his career against Arizona, Berríos owns a 1-0 record with a 0.73 ERA and 11 strikeouts. The Puerto Rican right-hander has won three of his past four decisions.

In his first game back in Arizona since being traded to the Blue Jays for Lourdes Gurriel Jr. and Gabriel Moreno in December 2022, it looked like Daulton Varsho was going to help his team earn a victory when he hit a leadoff triple in the seventh to help Toronto take a late lead. Instead, the bullpen was unable to hold on.

Moreno went 0-for-4 with a walk while Gurriel sat out with left shoulder soreness against the Blue Jays in the series opener.

On the line Saturday is Toronto’s two-series win streak, which could be snapped after knocking off the San Francisco Giants and Seattle Mariners during their West Coast road trip.

Looking to help his team earn another win is Yilber Diaz, who will make his second big-league start after allowing just one run on four hits over six innings against the Atlanta Braves last week.

Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette has missed the past two games with a right calf strain and is unlikely to play Saturday. The game can be seen at 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT on Sportsnet and Sportsnet+.