Granderson Sox it to the East leaders

TORONTO — Against Boston Red Sox ace Rick Porcello, a three-run second inning is considered a major offensive outburst.

And for the longest time Tuesday at Rogers Centre, it looked like it was going to be plenty of offence for the Toronto Blue Jays to get a jump on the runaway train that is their AL East rival.

If only it was that easy as closer Roberto Osuna squandered a brilliant starting effort from J.A. Happ to force extra innings.

In the end, Curtis Granderson saved the day for the Jays, belting a walk-off homer in the bottom of the 10th to give the Jays a 4-3 win.

It should never have gotten that far given Osuna was handed the ball with a 3-1 lead. But Osuna blew his first save of the season, allowing two Red Sox runs in the top of the ninth, but the Jays came back with the dramatic Granderson blast, the fourth walk-off homer of his career.

As strong as Porcello has been this season, the Jays had a sensational starter of their own in lefty Happ.

Happ has been the rock of the rotation so far with Marcus Stroman struggling and Aaron Sanchez looking to return to form after missing most of 2017.

Facing the most prolific offence in the big leagues so far this season, Happ struck out 10 and allowed just four hits and one run through seven innings of work.

While there was no panic from winning just one of four against the Yankees in New York over the weekend, scoring first against the Sox was a notable accomplishment.

As well, the Jays improved to 8-3 at the Rogers Centre this season after winning just two of their first 11 here last year.

The Red Sox, meanwhile, lost their third in a row and suddenly the Jays are just three back in the AL East.

Happ has been particularly solid against a division known for killer bats over the past few seasons. In nine starts against AL East opponents last season, Happ had a 2.21 ERA and in four games against the Red Sox allowed just five earned runs over 232/3 innings.

On Tuesday, he was particularly sharp, feeding off the aggressive Red Sox hitters, who like to swing early in an at-bat. That helped keep his pitch count down.

“If he’s on and he’s got life to his fastball and he’s locating it pretty good, he’s going to be tough on anybody,” Jays manager John Gibbons said. “He definitely has a different approach than the other guys.”