Rua, Mazara in the lineup against Happ today

The Toronto Blue Jays have lefty J.A. Happ on the mound for them today, and Jeff Banister has juggled his lineup, replacing Mitch Moreland at first base with Ryan Rua, and Shin-Soo Choo in right field with Nomar Mazara.

Rua playing in place of Moreland isn’t unexpected — Rua has started against most lefties this season — but replacing the lefty-swinging Choo with the lefty-swinging Mazara in right field is a bit of a surprise. Presumably, Banister feels that Mazara matches up better against Happ. I didn’t understand why Mazara was even on the ALDS roster, as I figured he wouldn’t get a start in the series, and doesn’t have a role off the bench, but I obviously figured wrong.

The lineup:

Gomez -- LF

Desmond — CF

Beltran — DH

Beltre -- 3B

Odor — 2B

Lucroy — C

Rua -- 1B

Elvis — SS

Mazara — RF

Yu Darvish is on the mound for Texas.