Blue Jays make questionable decision for Game 4 starter

The Blue Jays acquired Varland and first baseman/designated hitter Ty France from the Minnesota Twins at the trade deadline. Varland had performed well in this series (1.2 innings, one hit) before Judge's devastating blast.

Varland picked up a blown save and a loss courtesy of Judge's homer while seeing his postseason ERA balloon from 0.00 to 6.75.

The Yankees could get out to an early lead off Varland 

It's fair to question the Varland choice. 

Not only is he coming off a disastrous appearance, he has also appeared in each of the first three games of the series, giving the Yankees ample opportunity view and get a feel for his stuff. Of course, he'll also have to face the top of the Yankees lineup, including Judge, who is 7-11 (.636 batting average) with five RBI in the series. 

Judge, in addition to being scorching hot in the ALDS and delivering the big blow in Game 3, has an excellent track record in elimination games. He has six home runs in elimination games, tying Boston Red Sox legend David Ortiz for the most in MLB postseason history, per MLB Stats. 

Varland made one previous appearance as an opener for the Blue Jays, against the Red Sox on September 25 when he went 2.0 innings and struck out three. 

Getting out a lead early will be key to helping rookie right-hander Cam Schlittler settle in and replicate his performance against the Red Sox in the wild-card round, where he pitched eight innings and struck out 12.