For the first time in nearly two years, the Toronto Blue Jays won a series against the Baltimore Orioles. The two teams split the first two games on Tuesday and Wednesday and the home side came out on top with a 7-6 victory in the rubber match on Thursday.
Kevin Gausman got the start against his former club and impressed with eight strong innings en route to his 10th win of the season. The right-hander allowed two earned runs on three hits and three walks and struck out two batters. Both runs scored off of Gausman came in the third inning when Colton Cowser hit a two-run bomb.
Kevin Gausman, Nasty 87mph Splitter. 😨 pic.twitter.com/ogY9YiEDz5
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) August 9, 2024
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The Blue Jays pulled ahead early with three runs off of Baltimore starter Dean Kremer in the first inning. George Springer led off with a single, Daulton Varsho walked, and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. opened the scoring with a double, extending his hitting streak to 20 games. Varsho later came around to score on a balk and Alejandro Kirk plated another run with a single.
Kremer settled down and got through the second, third, and fourth innings without allowing another run and then Guerrero Jr. extended Toronto’s lead with a two-run dinger in the fifth. Reliever Keegan Akin came into the game and the Blue Jays added two more runs off of him in the sixth. Leo Jiménez hit a double, Varsho scored him with a single, and Vladdy added another run with a triple off of the wall in right field.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s 23rd home run of the season.
He’s now batting .320 with a .939 OPS
This run he’s on is ridiculous. #BlueJays pic.twitter.com/kYi9JZ3W1I
— Keegan Matheson (@KeeganMatheson) August 9, 2024
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The Blue Jays carried a 7-2 lead into the ninth inning and appeared to be on their way to an easy win but the bullpen made things interesting. Zach Pop came in and loaded the bases without getting anybody out and Chad Green had to come in and put out the fire. Jackson Holliday brought one run home with a groundout, Cedric Mullins cashed in one with a double, and then Colton Cowser made the score 7-6 with a two-run single. With the tying run on first, Green got Anthony Santander to fly out to end the game.
Up next, the Blue Jays will host the Oakland Athletics for a three-game weekend series. José Berríos will start for Toronto and Mitch Spence will go for Oakland in the series opener on Friday.