Sanchez is dynamite
Strikes out 10 in six innings in big 5-1 victory over the Orioles.
Josh Donaldson hit a two-run homer and Aaron Sanchez pitched six solid innings as the Toronto Blue Jays downed the Baltimore Orioles, 5-1, on Tuesday in a matchup of American League wild-card holders.
Ezequiel Carrera hit a solo shot and added another RBI for the Blue Jays (87-70), who extended their lead for the first AL wild card to two games over Baltimore.
Sanchez (14-2) allowed one run on five hits with two walks and 10 strikeouts to improve to 4-0 in five starts versus the Orioles. The right-hander struck out five of the first six batters he faced and four straight to open the game.
Roberto Osuna gave up back-toback base hits to lead off the ninth but escaped the jam with a force out and a double-play.
Mark Trumbo drove in a run for the Orioles (85-72).
Kevin Gausman (8-12) allowed five runs, four earned, on seven hits and two walks while striking out five.
Troy Tulowitzki was 2 for 4 with two doubles for Toronto while Jose Bautista failed to reach base for the first time in 34 games.
Donaldson put Toronto on the board with his 37th homer of the season, following a leadoff walk to Carrera with a two-run shot off Gausman in the first inning.
The Orioles cut the deficit in half in the third when Trumbo drove in J.J. Hardy from second with a base hit into centre field. Hardy had led off the inning with a double.
Carrera restored the two-run cushion with a solo blast, his sixth of the year, that landed in the Jays bullpen in the bottom of the third.
Carrera added his second RBI of the night in the bottom of the fifth, plating Kevin Pillar from second base with a single. Pillar dove head first into home as the throw from Orioles left-fielder Michael Bourn sailed just wide of the plate. Carrera advanced to second on the throw and scored on a fielder’s choice from an Edwin Encarnacion ground ball for a 5-1 Toronto lead.
Baltimore threatened in the sixth with runners on first and second with two out but Bourn hit a deep fly ball to Carrera in left field to end the inning.
Orioles first baseman Chris Davis was ejected after exchanging words with home-plate umpire Will Little following a strikeout in the seventh.
Manager Buck Showalter came out of the dugout and was also tossed.
Pillar made a spectacular catch in centre field to rob Jonathan Schoop of extra bases in the eighth inning.
Pillar, nicknamed Superman for his common flying-like plays, dove for a sharply hit line drive, caught it, and kept it in his glove as he hit the hard turf. NOTES: Attendance was 44,762. ... Toronto recalled infielder Andy Burns and selected the contract of right-hander Chris Smith before the game to help deal with injuries to Devon Travis and Joaquin Benoit. Both were hurt in a benches-clearing melee against the Yankees on Monday. Travis tweaked his shoulder and is dayto-day while Benoit has a calf muscle tear and is out two to three weeks.