Marcus Stroman to start wild-card game for Blue Jays over Francisco Liriano

TORONTO – Blue Jays manager John Gibbons is sticking with his guy. Marcus Stroman will get the start for Toronto on Tuesday night in the American League wild-card game against the Baltimore Orioles, as the opening day starter for the Jays will attempt to make sure it's not their last game this season.

"It wasn't easy, but I think [Stroman] is the perfect guy. Some guys rise to the occasion and I’ve seen Stroman do that many, many times. A big game, we've seen him do it before. He did it a couple times for us last year," said Gibbons.

The decision came down to Stroman or Francisco Liriano, who is fully rested and impressed in September. Liriano was also in strong consideration because the Orioles have struggled against lefthanders.

But ultimately Gibbons went with Stroman, who bounced back in the second half after an uneven start to the season. Stroman's ERA was 3.68 in 14 starts after the All-Star break, compared to 4.89 in his first 18 starts of the year, and his strikeouts were up and his walks were down. He has, however, not been lights-out in four meetings against Baltimore, posting a 1-2 record and a 7.04 ERA.

"I've definitely had an up-and-down year. I've battled a lot of adversity and I feel like I've done a pretty decent job at making adjustments throughout the year that were key for me and were able to pay off down the stretch," said Stroman. "I couldn't be happier, I couldn't be prouder, I couldn't be more excited to be the one to go out there in the deciding game to put us in the playoffs. I can't wait."

Liriano will be available out of the bullpen, with an eye on a potential lefty-on-lefty late-game matchup with Orioles slugger Chris Davis. If that scenario ends up playing out, the sure-to-be-sold out crowd will be rocking. The Blue Jays won their final regular season game on Sunday to ensure home-field advantage in the wild-card game, and reward a fan base that led the AL in attendance this year.

"It's changed here, (going) back (to) July of last year. The team's playing good, people start showing, a rowdy crowd. I know our guys love it. We love it," said Gibbons. "Who knows if it gives you an advantage or or not. I don't know. But you'd rather have it this way than the other way."

The expected emotion and intensity of the occasion played into Gibbons' thinking on who should be the starting pitcher. Stroman has shown he's the kind of pitcher that can thrive in an atmosphere that will consume Rogers Centre on Tuesday night. Chris Tillman is the Orioles' starter, and while the Blue Jays have historically performed well against him, especially at home, manager Buck Showalter believes the right-hander can put the past behind and send Baltimore to the ALDS.

"It's going to come down (to this): If Tillman's on, he's going to be tough; if Stroman's on, he's going to be tough," said Gibbons. "That's really how the game works."

The best case for Stroman is that his sinker is sharp and keeps balls that come off the Orioles' bats on the ground and not out of the park. That would be the first step to giving Blue Jays fans at least one more game to watch at home, and set himself up to pitch in the frenetic environment he craves later in October. With the Rangers awaiting the winner, and the recent history between Toronto and Texas, there's the promise of even more fireworks down the road. That's what gets Stroman going, and it's what Gibbons is betting on to get the team there.

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Israel Fehr is a writer for Yahoo Canada Sports. Email him at israelfehr@yahoo.ca or follow him on Twitter. Follow @israelfehr