First pitch: Tuesday, 7:10 p.m. ET
Line: Tampa Bay -150, Toronto +140, Total: 7.5

An early season rivalry continues on Tuesday night in Florida as the Blue Jays try to even their series with the Rays.

Toronto started this season out much different than 2013, as it is once again considered the underdog in the powerful AL East Division after many chose this club to win it last year. A flurry of big trades last offseason is what prompted many to hold the Blue Jays in such high regard, but this year they are looking to fill spots in-house with players they have been developing and added very little from the outside. Tampa Bay held pat in the offseason on trading star pitcher, David Price, as it looks to take down the AL East with top-notch pitching and a balanced offensive attack. The Rays did not add much from outside their club either, and will also be looking for youngsters like home-grown OF Wil Myers and P Jake Odorizzi to play a major role for the MLB club. After Monday's 9-2 drubbing by Tampa Bay, Toronto will look to even up the series with RHP Drew Hutchison, who will make his first start since giving the Blue Jays 11 starts in his rookie season back in 2012. RHP Alex Cobb (11-3, 2.76 ERA in 2013) will get the nod for Tampa Bay after breaking out in a big way last year and adding to the long list of successful starting pitchers developed on the farm for this franchise. despite the Rays finishing 18 games better than the Blue Jays last year, this series was quite close last year with Tampa's slight 11-8 edge. The Rays were 6-4 at home in those games and have a record of 14-5 at Tropicana Field against the Blue Jays over the past three seasons. Overall on the road last year, Toronto was a subpar 34-47 (.420), and will once again have its work cut out against a Rays team that was an impressive 51-30 (.630) at home in 2013. On the injury front, SS Jose Reyes (hamstring) will be placed on the DL for the Toronto after aggravating his hamstring in Monday night’s contest.

Drew Hutchison will get the opportunity to prove his worth this year after rehabbing from Tommy John surgery last season. He was stellar in Spring Training, allowing three runs in just 15 innings while striking out 19 batters to earn his way into the rotation. Hutchison did have a somewhat successful first stint in the majors back in 2012, where he started 11 games for Toronto, going 5-3 with a 4.60 ERA (1.35 WHIP) and a 7.5 K/9 rate. In that time, he did pitch once against the Rays with poor results, lasting only four innings and allowing six earned runs (2 HR) while striking out three in the loss. Only three of the current Rays (Matt Joyce, Ben Zobrist and Sean Rodriguez) have faced Hutchison in an MLB game, going a combined 0-for-6 against him. Hutchison will need to be careful when he is facing OF Wil Myers though, as he started the year off hot on Monday, going 3-for-5 with two runs batted in. The Blue Jays' bullpen was solid last year, combining for a 3.37 ERA (9th in league) while converting 39-of-58 save opportunities (67%). They took a blow early on in 2014 though, as closer Casey Janssen (back) was added to the 15-day DL, and they will be relying on RHP Sergio Santos (1-1, 1.75 ERA in 2013) to close games for the time being. He has successfully saved 34-of-46 games (74%) in his career, with the bulk of the saves (30) coming in 2011 with the White Sox.

Alex Cobb had a huge season for the Rays last year and will look to expand on his success as a 26-year-old in 2014. He has faced Toronto only twice in his young career, winning both games while allowing just two earned runs (1.35 ERA, 0.75 WHIP) over 13.1 innings. No one on the Blue Jays' side of the ball has more than six at-bats against Cobb, so they may have trouble with his incredible fastball-changeup, one-two punch that he brings to the table. The players on Toronto’s roster who have had an opportunity in this matchup have gone a combined 7-for-35 (.200) with the only extra-base hit (a home run) coming off the bat of OF Colby Rasmus (2-for-5). Tampa Bay once again boasted a solid bullpen in 2013, posting a 27-24 record to go along with a 3.59 ERA and converting 42-of-60 saves (70.0%). Closer Grant Balfour (1-3. 2.59 ERA) was great for Oakland last year, saving 38 games while blowing just three (93%), and should improve the back-end of the Rays bullpen in his return to the team.