Blue Jays sweep Bosox
BOSTON – The Toronto Blue Jays more than made up for the loss of slugger Jose Bautista against the Boston Red Sox.
Brett Lawrie hit the game’s first pitch for one of Toronto’s four homers and the Blue Jays tagged Jon Lester for a careerworst 11 runs in a 15-7 victory that completed a three-game sweep over the Red Sox on Sunday.
J.P. Arencibia, Rajai Davis and Travis Snider also homered for the Blue Jays.
Coming into Boston last in the division and minus one of the game’s best power hitters, the Blue Jays pounded the Red Sox by a combined score of 28-11 after being swept in three games by the Yankees.
“It was just a very good offensive day and a very good weekend, considering what we came out of in New York and the loss of Jose,” Toronto manager John Farrell said. “The guys bounced back and we had a very good weekend here.”
Bautista who leads the club with 27 homers, is on the 15day disabled list with a sore left wrist.
Toronto (48-47) posted a season high for runs and climbed out of the AL East cellar, moving a half-game ahead of the Red Sox (48-48). The Blue Jays matched their season high with 18 hits.
Athletics 5 Yankees 4
OAKLAND, CALIF. – Seth Smith hit a tying homer in the ninth inning, Coco Crisp singled home the winning run in the 12th and surging Oakland rallied from four runs down to stun New York and complete a four-game sweep.
Smith homered to centre with one out in the ninth off closer Rafael Soriano to help the A’s sweep the Yankees in a four-game series at the Oakland Coliseum for the first time. The Athletics improved to 14-2 in July, the best record in the majors.
The AL East-leading Yankees had not been swept in a fourgame series since May 2003 against Toronto.
Larkin, Santo inducted into Hall
COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. – Barry Larkin lost it before he even started. Vicki Santo never wavered as she honoured her late husband, Ron.
Larkin, the former star shortstop for the Cincinnati Reds, and Ron Santo, a standout third baseman for the Chicago Cubs and later a beloved broadcaster for the team, were inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum.
Larkin, who played his entire 19-year career with the Reds, retired after the 2004 season with a .295 career average, 2,340 hits, 1,329 runs scored and 379 stolen bases.
Ron Santo didn’t live to experience the day he always dreamed of. Plagued by health problems, he died Dec. 3, 2010, at the age of 70. His long battle with diabetes cost him both legs below the knees, but he ultimately died of complications from bladder cancer.
In 15 major league seasons, all but one with the Cubs, Santo was one of the top third basemen in major league history. He compiled a .277 batting average, had 2,254 hits, 1,331 RBIs and 365 doubles in 2,243 games.