Bo Bichette and Addison Barger hit back-to-back home runs in the bottom of the ninth inning Tuesday night and the Toronto Blue Jays defeated the visiting Arizona Diamondbacks 5-4.
Bichette’s one-out homer tied the game against Shelby Miller (3-2), then Barger followed with a blast to right to end Toronto’s three-game losing streak.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. had a solo homer and three RBIs in a three-hit game for Toronto in the opener of a three-game series.
Toronto scored once in the first against starter Brandon Pfaadt. Barger doubled to right field and Guererro stroked an RBI double to left on an inside changeup.
Guerrero hit a long homer to left-center on a first-pitch fastball that sat in the middle of the plate in the third.
Arizona scored once in the fourth against starter Chris Bassitt. Josh Naylor, who is from the Toronto area, singled and took second when Eugenio Suarez was hit by a pitch, then scored on Pavin Smith’s single.
Arizona took the lead in the fifth. Corbin Carroll walked, Ketel Marte singled to right and Carroll came home when Barger’s throw skipped past third base. Naylor hit an RBI double to center.
Myles Straw, who had taken over in center field in the fifth after Jonatan Clase was hit by a pitch in the fourth, appeared to twist an ankle before going into the wall on Naylor’s hit. Straw left the game and Alan Roden took over in center.
George Springer’s leadoff single in the sixth brought Kyle Backhus from the bullpen to replace Pfaadt, who allowed two runs, four hits and one walk with three strikeouts and three hit batsmen in five-plus innings.
Bassitt gave up three runs, six hits and one walk with five strikeouts in six innings.
Toronto’s Brendon Little allowed two walks and a balk while getting two outs in the seventh and was replaced by Braydon Fisher, who yielded Suarez’s RBI single to give Arizona a 4-2 lead.
Toronto scored once in the home seventh as Bichette doubled against Jalen Beeks and scored on Guerrero’s bouncing single to left against Ryan Thompson.
Blue Jays closer Jeff Hoffman (6-2) pitched around a walk in the ninth.
Arizona catcher Gabriel Moreno (hand) was a late scratch.
–Field Level Media
