Alejandro Kirk produced three hits, a home run and three RBIs and Jose Soriano threw 5 2/3 solid innings on Tuesday to help the visiting Toronto Blue Jays earn a 10-5 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays.
Kazuma Okamoto and Josh Smith also homered, while George Springer and Ernie Clement both finished with three hits for the Blue Jays, whose 17 hits were their second-most in a game this season.
Soriano (10-6) earned his first win since being shipped from the Los Angeles Angels at the trade deadline. He yielded three runs on nine hits while striking two for Toronto, which won its sixth game in eight tries.
Nick Martinez (12-4) started for Tampa Bay and allowed six runs on nine hits across 3 2/3 innings. He also struck out five and walked two. Taylor Walls drove in two runs for the Rays, who have dropped four of their last five.
Toronto struck first to begin the game, as Kirk doubled and scored on Springer’s two-out single. Jesus Sanchez then doubled to give the visitors a 2-0 lead.
After Nathan Lukes walked to lead off the third, Kirk launched a 414-foot blast to give Toronto a four-run lead.
Tampa Bay loaded the bases in the bottom of the third, but Soriano got Jonathan Aranda to ground into an inning-ending double play.
Clement and Brett Bateman singled in the fourth, before Kirk’s RBI single and Martinez’s wild pitch put the Blue Jays up 6-0.
Tampa Bay loaded the bases again in the bottom of the fourth. The Rays took advantage this time, as Soriano’s wild pitch scored a run and Walls drove in two with a single to cut the Rays’ deficit in half.
The Blue Jays got both runs back in the fifth. Okamoto started the frame with his 25th home run and Bateman drove in the eighth Toronto run with a two-out single.
In the seventh, Clement singled and Smith belted his third homer of the year — and second since being traded from the Texas Rangers — to extend the lead to 10-3.
After the Rays loaded the bases for the third time in the bottom of the eighth, Cedric Mullins and Richie Palacios each had a sacrifice fly to pull Tampa Bay within five.
Tampa Bay collected 13 hits, with two apiece coming from Chandler Simpson, Junior Caminero, Yandy Diaz and Ryan Vilade.
–Field Level Media
