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Jays' pitching aims to extend scoreless streak vs. Twins

Jul 23, 2007 - 2:05 PM Minnesota (51-47) at Toronto (48-50) 7:07 pm EDT

TORONTO (Ticker) -- Coming off two impressive pitching performances, the Toronto Blue Jays will now have to deal with the American League's best hurler.

The Blue Jays will aim for a third straight win when they face Johan Santana and the Minnesota Twins in the opener of a three-game series on Monday.

One day after four Toronto pitchers combined on a three-hit shutout over the Seattle Mariners, ace Roy Halladay matched the effort, throwing one of his own. Overall, Blue Jay pitching has not allowed a run in the last 22 innings.

To continue the streak, the Blue Jays will turn to one of their most pleasant surprises, Shaun Marcum (5-4, 3.73 ERA). Since joining the rotation in May, he is 4-2 with a 3.24 ERA in 13 starts.

The righthander did not figure into the decision in his only other outing against Minnesota this season despite allowing one run and six hits in eight innings of a 2-1 road loss on June 26.

Marcum will be looking to rebound for a 6-1 loss to the New York Yankees on Wednesday, allowing three runs and five hits in six frames.

He will have his hands full as he opposes Santana (11-7, 2.65), who is sure to respond after absorbing his first loss since June 9 in a 3-2 setback to the Detroit Tigers on Wednesday. He yielded three runs and five hits over eight innings in the outing.

Nevertheless, the two-time AL Cy Young award winner is still 5-1 with a 1.62 ERA in his last seven starts. He will be looking to improve his resume against Toronto, as he is just 2-3 with a 4.15 ERA in nine games - including six starts - against them.

The Twins missed out on a sweep of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim on Sunday with a 7-2 loss.