ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — The Toronto Blue Jays dugout got a laugh when slugger Vladimir Guerrero Jr. struck out against a position player. Given a second chance against Luke Raley, Guerrero hit his fourth career grand slam.
Guerrero had six RBIs and the Blue Jays stopped a five-game losing streak with a 20-1 rout of the Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday night, scoring their last 10 runs off position players.
Guerrero put Toronto ahead with an RBI single off Taj Bradley (3-1) in the first, had a run-scoring single in the fifth that opened a 10-0 lead and hit a 423-foot grand slam in a nine-run ninth against Raley.
"We were all kind of laughing," Blue Jays manager John Schneider said of Guerrero's strikeout on a 50 mph pitch. "It's hard to do against a dude throwing 40, whatever. You kind of take it for what it's worth. The fact that he was laughing, I loved it."
"But, you don't get Vladdy twice on a position player," Schneider added. "He's going to get you."
Guerrero is hitting .300 with eight homers and 33 RBIs. His six RBIs were one shy of his career high.
All 12 Toronto batters in the game had hits, and the Blue Jays finished with 27 hits — their most since getting 29 against Boston in a 28-5 win last July 22.
Tampa Bay entered with the second-fewest runs allowed in the majors at 170 and gave up its most since a 20-8 loss at Boston on Aug. 11, 2021.
"In fairness, it got a little ugly." Rays manager Kevin Cash said.
George Springer had a career-high four hits, and Bo Bichette, Whit Merrifield, Danny Jansen and Guerrero had three apiece. Springer hit his seventh homer, a solo drive in the third.
"It's good to see some positives on our side," Springer said. "It's just a good day. Hopefully spiral into a lot more."
Raley, an outfielder and first baseman, allowed seven runs and eight hits over 1 2/3 innings. He threw 27 pitches of 47-54 mph.
"It's something I can honestly say I never thought I would do ... at least have one strikeout in the books," Raley said.
Catcher Christian Bethancourt entered with two outs in the ninth and gave up Daulton Varsho's RBI single and Jansen's two-run homer.
Raley's ERA is 30.38 after his second mound appearance this season. Bethancourt's ERA is 81.00.
"It's not my favorite place to be," Raley said. "I told them before, I got rocked in high school, so I can't imagine what these guys would actually do to me if I tried to pitch. So just try to lob it over the plate and save our bullpen."
Cash said with a smile that Raley needs to add a changeup.
Zack Burdi gave up six runs in the fifth, five of them earned.
José Berríos (4-4) allowed one run, five hits and two walks, striking out five.
Isaac Paredes homered for the Rays, who dropped to 22-5 at home this season. Tampa Bay leads the majors with 95 home runs.
Bradley gave up four runs and nine hits in four innings.
YANKEES 6, ORIOLES 5, 10 INNINGS
NEW YORK (AP) — Aaron Judge hit a tying homer in the ninth inning and rookie Anthony Volpe drove in the winning run with a sacrifice fly in the 10th against Bryan Baker (3-2) as streaking New York rallied past Baltimore.
Harrison Bader homered to begin New York's comeback from an early 4-0 deficit, and Judge took Gerrit Cole off the hook for his first loss in 11 starts this season.
Back home from a 6-1 trip, the Yankees (30-20) won their fifth straight in a series opener between AL East rivals.
Cedric Mullins and Gunnar Henderson homered off Cole for Baltimore, which was coming off a three-game sweep at Toronto.
Michael King (1-1) pitched two hitless innings for the win, striking out three.
DODGERS 8, BRAVES 1
ATLANTA (AP) — Bobby Miller allowed one run over five innings in his big league debut and Los Angeles beat Atlanta.
J.D. Martinez and Jason Heyward homered for the Dodgers, who also got three RBIs from Will Smith.
Spencer Strider (4-2) fanned 11 hitters to increase his MLB-leading strikeout total to 97 — his fourth start this season with double-digit Ks and 10th of his young career. He allowed four runs, two earned, in six innings.
Miller (1-0) surrendered four hits, walked one and struck out five while consistently reaching 100 mph with his fastball.
RANGERS 6, PIRATES 1
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Texas' Nathan Eovaldi pitched a complete game for the second time in five starts after throwing just two in the first 226 of his major league career.
Eovaldi (6-2) allowed six hits, struck out five and walked one, his fifth straight start of at least seven innings.
Josh Jung hit his 11th home run of his first full season in the majors to give the Rangers a five-run lead in the eighth.
Texas has won four of five. Pittsburgh has split its last eight games after losing 11 of 12 and has not won a series since taking two of three at Washington on April 29 and 30.
Rich Hill (4-4) gave up five runs on seven hits in 5 1/3 innings with a season-high nine strikeouts.
PADRES 7, NATIONALS 4
WASHINGTON (AP) — Juan Soto hit his ninth homer and had three hits to begin a three-game visit to his former team as San Diego beat Washington.
Jake Cronenworth followed Soto's seventh-inning solo shot with a two-run homer two batters later as the Padres scored four times off Nationals reliever Erasmo Ramirez (2-2).
San Diego's Yu Darvish (3-3) allowed back-to-back homers to CJ Abrams and Lane Thomas in the fifth inning, but no other damage in a six-inning effort.
Josh Hader worked a scoreless ninth for his 12th save in 14 chances.
DIAMONDBACKS 4, PHILLIES 3
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Corbin Carroll singled in the go-ahead run in the eighth inning for his third hit and Arizona beat Philadelphia for its ninth victory in 11 games.
At 29-20, Arizona moved nine games over .500 for the first time since Sept. 11, 2018, when it was 77-68.
Lourdes Gurriel Jr. extended his hitting streak to 16 games — the longest active run in the majors — with a leadoff double in the eighth off Seranthony Dominguez (1-2). After advancing to third on a passed ball by J.T. Realmuto, Gurriel scored on Carroll's single to left through a drawn-in infield.
Reliever Jose Ruiz (2-0) got the win and Miguel Castro earned his fifth save with clean ninth.
GIANTS 4, TWINS 3
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Michael Conforto doubled to spark a sixth-inning rally and hit the go-ahead two-run homer in the seventh as San Francisco rallied past Minnesota.
The Giants have won seven of eight. Alex Cobb (4-1) finished seven innings for the third time in four starts this month, working around a two-run home run by Byron Buxton in the first inning and a solo shot by Michael Taylor in the fifth.
With Jorge López (1-2) on the mound for the seventh, Thairo Estrada led off with a double and trotted home on Conforto's 10th homer of the season.
Camilo Doval pitched a hitless ninth for his 13th save in 14 attempts.
ROCKIES 5, MARLINS 4
DENVER (AP) — Charlie Blackmon doubled in a four-run fifth inning, Jurickson Profar extended his on-base streak to 31 games and Colorado spoiled 20-year-old Eury Pérez's road debut for Miami.
Elías Díaz had three hits for Colorado. The Rockies have won the first two of the four-game set.
Pérez (1-1) allowed four runs — three earned — on four hits in 4 1/3 innings.
Garrett Cooper's two-run homer with two outs in the sixth inning chased starter Austin Gomber (4-4). Soler's RBI double in the ninth made it a one-run game, but Pierce Johnson closed it out for his 10th save.
CUBS 7, METS 2
CHICAGO (AP) — Christopher Morel, Matt Mervis and Seiya Suzuki homered and Chicago cooled off New York.
Mervis had three RBIs and Drew Smyly (5-1) pitched four-hit ball into the sixth inning.
Morel extended his homer streak to five games with a solo shot against Stephen Nogosek in the seventh. He became the first player with such a streak for the Cubs since Sammy Sosa in June 1998.
Tylor Megill (5-3) allowed six runs, four earned, in 3 2/3 innings for the Mets, whose five-game winning streak ended. Pete Alonso hit his big league-best 18th homer for New York.
BREWERS 6, ASTROS 0
MILWAUKEE (AP) — Joey Wiemer and Owen Miller homered, Colin Rea combined with four relievers on a five-hitter and Milwaukee stopped Houston's eight-game winning streak.
Rea (1-3) gave up four hits in 5 1/3 innings. Houston was blanked for the second time.
J.P. France (1-1) gave up two runs — one earned — and five hits in 5 2/3 innings.
WHITE SOX 4, GUARDIANS 2
CLEVELAND (AP) — Romy González's two-run double off rookie starter Logan Allen (1-2) broke a 2-2 seventh-inning tie and sent Chicago past Cleveland.
Yasmani Grandal homered for the White Sox, who started 7-21 but have won six of eight.
Chicago's rally helped Dylan Cease (3-3) win for the first time since April 10 — a span of eight starts. The right-hander went six innings, Keynan Middleton and Joe Kelly pitched an inning apiece, and Kendall Graveman worked the ninth for his fourth save.
CARDINALS 8, REDS 5
CINCINNATI (AP) — Paul Goldschmidt homered in his first two at-bats and St. Louis' Adam Wainwright beat Cincinnati for the first time since 2019.
The Cardinals have won 12 of 16 since starting the season 10-24.
Goldschmidt hit solo homers in the first and third innings off Graham Ashcraft (2-3).
Wainwright (2-0) allowed five runs in 5 2/3 innings.
ROYALS 4, TIGERS 1
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Maikel Garcia had three hits, an RBI and a run and Kansas City beat Detroit to snap a four-game skid.
Mike Mayers allowed one run on six hits in 4 2/3 innings in his first start for the Royals. He struck out a career-high eight and walked one. Jose Cuas (3-0) was the winner, and Aroldis Chapman pitched a scoreless ninth for his second save.
Eduardo Rodriguez (4-4) allowed four runs — two earned — on eight hits in five innings.
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