Blue Jays vs Cardinals: Todays Lineup - Game Preview

Blue Jays' Bowden Francis takes the bump today versus Cardinals rookie Andre Pallante. First pitch at 1:05 PM ET.

Francis pitched 2.2 innings in his last Grapefruit League contest against the Phillies, allowing five runs on seven hits and three walks while striking out four batters.

Francis made two previous appearances this spring, but this was his first start after the initial scheduled one was rained out.

Spring training has not been kind to Francis through 6.2 innings of work, as he sports an ugly 12.15 ERA. He's allowed 11 hits, including three home runs, and five walks while striking out seven.

Francis gave up a ton of hard contact versus Philadelphia, including a third-inning homer to Alec Bohm. Francis is currently slots in at the back end of Toronto's starting rotation.

Hopefully todays outing is a turning point in a troublesome start to 2025 Grapefruit League action.

Clement's off to a great start this spring, entering today hitting .429 (10-for-23) with two home runs, six RBI and a stolen base.

And, perhaps most importantly, he's playing in games again after getting hit in the face by a 91 mile per hour fastball last week.

Clement was initially removed from the Blue Jays game out of the fear of a possible concussion and a lip laceration, but he ended up being okay and returned to the Blue Jays' lineup on Thursday and blasted a monster home run in his first at-bat back.

Two years ago, Clement arrived in Dunedin as a bit of an afterthought. Now he's set to leave spring training as one of the most important players on the team's roster.