Jays have faith Bowden Francis can rebound vs. Phillies
It’s been almost two months since Toronto starter Bowden Francis picked up a victory, but Blue Jays manager John Schneider says he still has trust in the 6-foot-5, 220-pound right-hander heading into Saturday afternoon’s road start against the Philadelphia Phillies.
Sanchez has allowed three runs or fewer in 11 straight starts, including the June 3 win against Francis when he gave up one run — a homer to Davis Schneider — on four hits and four walks over six innings while striking out four.
Now up 2-1 in the NBA Finals, the Pacers turned up the heat on the NBA’s MVP on Wednesday with loosely controlled aggression, hemming him with heavy contact and multiple defenders and hounding him into submission by the fourth quarter. Instead of a takeover, he took only three shots in the final 12 minutes, and the Pacers’ plan worked to perfection behind a boisterous crowd ready to bring it again Friday night.
“Yeah, they were aggressive. They were high in the pick-and-rolls. They were, like Coach said, more aggressive, more forceful,” Gilgeous-Alexander said postgame. “Yeah, starts with me. But we got to apply that pressure back, especially if you want to beat a team like that on the road. You got to be the more forceful team, for sure.”
