AROUND THE HORN
▪ Blue Jays: Marcus Semien hit a walk-off home run to begin the seventh inning and the Blue Jays beat the skidding Red Sox 1-0 in the opening game of Saturday’s doubleheader. Each team managed only two hits, and Semien got the biggest of all. He connected on the first pitch from Matt Barnes (5-3) for his 26th home run of the season and the first game-ending homer of his career. “It was amazing,” left-hander Robbie Ray said of the celebration that followed Semien’s drive. “Everybody was screaming and yelling. It was a fun little experience.” Semien’s decisive shot was Toronto’s 166th. The Blue Jays began the day tied with the Giants for the MLB lead.
▪ Yankees: DJ LeMahieu and Kyle Higashioka made savvy baserunning moves, turning a double-play grounder into the go-ahead run, and the Yankees beat the Mariners 5-4 Saturday for their fifth straight win. Aaron Judge and Rougned Odor homered and the Yankees capitalized on a three-base error by right fielder Mitch Haniger to win for the 10th time in 12 games. The Yankees erased a 4-1 deficit by scoring four times in the sixth inning. The Yankees have won the first three in a four-game series against the Mariners in a matchup of teams in the playoff chase. Odor hit a two-run drive inside the right field foul pole to pull the Yankees within 4-3 in the sixth . ... Yankees put closer Aroldis Chapman on the 10-day injured list Saturday because of inflammation in his left elbow. Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Chapman experienced a little inflammation last weekend in Miami but an MRI came back clean. Boone said it will be a few days of no throwing for the hard-throwing lefty.
▪ Red Sox: Red Sox put slugger J.D. Martinez on the COVID-19-related injured list before Saturday’s doubleheader in Toronto, further weakening a struggling offense that has scored five runs or fewer in 13 straight games. Martinez hasn’t tested positive for the virus, manager Alex Cora said. The team said bench coach Will Venable had tested positive. First base coach Tom Goodwin was in quarantine after close exposure to Venable, and quality control coach Ramon Vazquez was coaching first base. Martinez is batting .284 with 21 home runs and 68 RBIs in 104 games. “He felt sick last night, has been feeling sick the whole day,” Cora said.
▪ Athletics: Matt Olson matched his career high with four hits, including a two-run double as part of Oakland’s seven-run third inning, and the Athletics beat the Rangers 12-3 Saturday, handing them their 13th consecutive road loss. Yan Gomes and Josh Harrison also homered. The Athletics’ sputtering offense batted around in consecutive innings for the first time since 2016. A’s newcomer Starling Marte added a pair of hits to continue his surge at the plate. The Athletics have won seven of nine. Cole Irvin pitched four-hit ball over seven innings. Adolis García homered and drove in three for the Rangers, who have lost five straight.
▪ Tigers: Infielder Jonathan Schoop and the Tigers agreed Saturday to a $15 million, two-year contract covering 2022 and 2023. Schoop is hitting .289 a team-best 64 RBIs. His 18 homers are tied with Eric Haase for the club lead. Schoop gets $7.5 million annually under the new deal, and he has the right to opt out after the 2022 season to become a free agent.