(Best E Casino) - Former Cy Young Award winners square off this evening at Progressive Field when C.C. Sabathia and the Cleveland Indians welcome Roy Halladay and the Toronto Blue Jays to town for the start of a four-game series.

Sabathia, though, is not pitching like the AL's reigning Cy Young winner, going just 1-5 with a 7.51 earned run average through his first seven starts. After two solid outings, Sabathia was shaky in his last trip to the hill on Saturday against Kansas City, as he was tagged with the loss after allowing four runs and 10 hits in 6 1/3 frames.

He had surrendered just a run over his previous two starts, spanning 14 innings.

Sabathia has faced the Jays nine times, going 6-3 against them with a 3.71 ERA.

Halladay, the AL's top pitcher in 2003, has been tremendous in the early going for the Jays, even though his record may indicate otherwise. Halladay improved to 3-4 on Sunday against Chicago, as he allowed three runs (one earned) and three hits in 7 1/3 frames to lower his ERA to 3.00.

It was the first time in five starts that Halladay did not go the distance, but it was only his second win in that span.

Halladay has had success against the Tribe over the course of his career, posting a perfect 5-0 mark to go along with a 3.77 ERA in 10 games, nine of which have been starts.

Toronto enters this series on a down note after dropping two of three to the Tampa Bay Rays, including an 8-3 setback in 13 innings in Thursday's rubber match at Rogers Centre.

Vernon Wells had tied the game for the Jays in the bottom of the ninth with a home run, but Shawn Camp (0-1) served up a grand slam to Dioner Navarro as part of the Rays' five-run 13th to take the loss.

Toronto, though, has still won six of its last eight games and will be beginning a 10-game road trip tonight. The Jays are 7-10 away from home this season.

Cleveland also comes into tonight's opener on a losing note after being denied a sweep in their three-game series with the New York Yankees, falling 6-3 in Thursday's finale at Yankee Stadium.

Paul Byrd (1-3), whose only victory this season came against the Yankees, allowed five runs on eight hits in 6 1/3 innings for the Indians, who were attempting their first three-game sweep at Yankee Stadium since April 7-9, 1989.

Casey Blake roped a two-run double, while Franklin Gutierrez tallied two hits and scored a run in the setback.

Cleveland won four of six from the Jays last season and is 12-6 in the series since the start of the 2005 campaign. Toronto has also lost 12 of its last 13 in Cleveland.