Alejandro Kirk hit a sacrifice fly to cap a three-run ninth and the Toronto Blue Jays defeated the visiting Baltimore Orioles 5-4 on Saturday afternoon.
Kirk, who had an RBI single as a pinch hitter in the eighth, hit the decisive fly to center against Yennier Cano (3-7).
Addison Barger hit a solo home run for the Blue Jays (86-62), who have won the first two of the three-game series.
Coby Mayo homered and Gunnar Henderson and Samuel Basallo had RBI doubles to help the Orioles (69-79).
Baltimore scored twice in the first against Max Scherzer. Jackson Holliday led off with a single to center, Dylan Beavers walked and Henderson lashed an RBI double to right over the head of Nathan Lukes and off the wall. Beavers scored on Tyler O’Neill’s groundout to shortstop.
Tomoyuki Sugano worked a clean bottom of the first but limped off the field when Vladimir Guerrero Jr. lined a ball off his left foot before being thrown out at first. Sugano returned to strike out the side in the second.
Barger led off the fifth with a home run to right center on a 2-2 sweeper.
Scherzer allowed two runs, four hits and two walks with five strikeouts after five innings. Sugano left after six innings in which he allowed one run, four hits and no walks with four strikeouts.
Former Oriole Seranthony Dominguez replaced Eric Lauer with two out and one on in the eighth. Henderson stole second before O’Neill’s infield hit put runners at the corners. Basallo lined an RBI double to left over Davis Schneider’s head and against the wall.
Baltimore’s Kade Strowd allowed two singles in the eighth before Keegan Akin replaced him with two out and allowed Kirk’s RBI single. Guerrero walked to load the bases before pinch hitter Isiah Kiner-Falefa grounded out.
Mayo homered to left center against Braydon Fisher (6-0) on a hanging curve in the ninth.
Cano replaced Akin after Daulton Varsho bunted for a hit and took second on Akin’s throwing error. Ernie Clement singled. Pinch hitter Joey Loperfido hit an RBI single to right. Andres Gimenez tied the game with a single to left. Catcher interference with George Springer at the plate loaded the bases for Kirk.
–Field Level Media
