Blue Jays use 4 homers to avoid sweep, top Mariners 8-3

SEATTLE (AP) — After three straight losses on the West Coast and watching George Springer go down with another injury, Toronto manager Charlie Montoyo felt the need to get out of Seattle with at least one victory.

Once again the Blue Jays leaned on the long ball, and hot-hitting Teoscar Hernández was the instigator.

“That's why I’m so happy with how the team came today and didn’t die. They came to fight and win a game and they did,” Montoyo said. “Pitching was good. Offense was good. It was great.”

Hernández and Randal Grichuk both connected in the second inning, and the Blue Jays used four homers to avoid a sweep with an 8-3 win over the Seattle Mariners on Sunday.

Hernández and Grichuk each hit their 20th homers of the season as part of Toronto’s three-run second inning against Seattle rookie Logan Gilbert, and the Blue Jays escaped Seattle without losing more ground in the American League wild-card race.

Alejandro Kirk added a two-out, two-run double in the third inning and the offensive surge, along with a solid start from Steven Matz, snapped a three-game losing streak for the Blue Jays.

“What is in the past, it’s in the past,” Hernández said. “We’re going to get concentrated on the last two games that we have in Washington, and try to win both, and try to go home in a good spot.”

Seattle missed a chance to jump ahead of Toronto in the wild-card race. After moments of offensive bursts in the first two games of the series, Seattle was mostly punchless against Matz. The Mariners' lone run off the left-hander came in the first inning and without the ball leaving the infield as an infield single, two wild pitches and a passed ball allowed J.P. Crawford to score.

Seattle’s only other runs came on Kyle Seager's 26th...

source https://www.chron.com/sports/article/Blue-Jays-use-4-homers-to-avoid-sweep-top-16388819.php