George Springer went 4-for-4 with three two-out RBIs and Jose Berrios spun seven strong innings to lead the visiting Toronto Blue Jays to a 6-2 win over the Boston Red Sox in the opener of a four-game series on Monday.
Springer contributed to all four run-scoring innings and led a 13-hit attack for the Blue Jays, who had lost three straight. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (2-for-4, run), Alejandro Kirk (2-for-5) and Nathan Lukes (2-for-5, RBI) also had multiple hits.
Berrios (1-1) induced nine groundouts and struck out two to complete his outing on 88 pitches despite allowing one run on four hits and three walks.
Jarren Duran had two of Boston’s five hits.
The Red Sox were on a five-game win streak.
Boston starter Richard Fitts (0-2) departed after six innings of three-run ball. He permitted six hits and four walks while striking out four.
Bo Bichette sparked the Blue Jays’ two-run third with a leadoff double to left-center, and he later scored on an Andres Gimenez sacrifice fly. Springer doubled the Toronto lead with a two-out single to left.
Back-to-back walks for Boston started the bottom of the third, though Hamilton was picked off. Duran doubled through the right side, Rafael Devers drove a sacrifice fly to center to make it 2-1.
From there, Berrios faced the minimum through the sixth — an 11-batter span — and put his offense in position to extend.
In the fifth, Fitts erased a Guerrero leadoff single with a 3-6-3 double play, but after Gimenez walked and stole second, Springer lined an RBI base hit down the left field line for a 3-1 score.
The Jays logged two more two-out runs in the seventh. Springer and Will Wagner bookended a string of three straight singles with an RBI apiece.
A long RBI single off the left field wall by Triston Casas gave Boston life with two outs in the eighth. The run came after the Red Sox had a batter reach on an error and drew a walk to begin the inning against Yimi Garcia.
Toronto added ninth-inning insurance when Lukes blooped a single into shallow center. Anthony Santander (leadoff single) scored on the play, but Springer did not cross the plate before Rafaela’s relay throw nabbed Wagner (walk) at third.
Red Sox catcher Connor Wong exited the game in the second inning with a left hand contusion after being hit by Springer’s bat on a catcher’s interference play in the first.
–Field Level Media
