Alejandro Kirk singled in the go-ahead run in a two-run sixth, Jose Soriano pitched seven effective innings and the Toronto Blue Jays defeated the visiting Seattle Mariners 4-3 on Saturday afternoon.

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The Blue Jays won their second in a row to open the three-game series on a day when former Blue Jays catcher, manager and broadcaster Buck Martinez was inducted into the Blue Jays’ new Hall of Excellence.

Soriano (11-7) allowed three runs, five hits and two walks while striking out six.

Louis Varland pitched the ninth to earn his 31st save.

Cal Raleigh hit a solo home run for the Mariners.

Seattle took a 1-0 lead in the second when Raleigh lined an elevated 0-1 fastball to right for his 19th homer of the season.

The Mariners added two in the fourth. Josh Naylor singled over the bag at first base with two out and Raleigh and Cole Young walked to load the bases. Taylor Ward lined a first-pitch single to left that scored two runs.

Toronto cut the lead to 3-2 in the fifth. Myles Straw hit an infield single to second with one out and Brett Bateman walked. Eduard Bazardo replaced starter Kade Anderson, who was making his second career major league start, and struck out Kirk before walking Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to load the bases. George Springer drew a bases-loaded walk on a wild pitch to force in a run, and Bateman also scored as the ball got away.

Anderson allowed two runs, three hits and three walks with three strikeouts in 4 1/3 innings.

Toronto took a 4-3 lead in the sixth against Jose Ferrer (4-3). Charles McAdoo and Straw walked.

Bateman grounded an RBI single with two out that found a hole through the left side of the infield. Kirk’s single to right scored the go-ahead run and Carlos Vargas replaced Ferrer.

Vargas retired all seven batters he faced.

Tyler Rogers allowed a two-out walk to Julio Rodriguez in the eighth. Mason Fluharty replaced Rogers and allowed Naylor’s single to right to put runners at the corners before striking out Raleigh.

Bryce Eldridge leads Giants to split-earning win over D-backs

Bryce Eldridge matched career highs with four hits and four RBIs, Rafael Devers drove in two runs with a pair of singles, and the San Francisco Giants salvaged a doubleheader split with the visiting Arizona Diamondbacks with a 7-2 victory in the nightcap Saturday night.

Despite the split, which began with a 7-1 win in Saturday’s opener, the Diamondbacks were able to move into a virtual tie with the San Diego Padres, who lost at Tampa Bay, for the National League’s third wild-card spot.

In a duel of rookie pitchers that followed a number-retirement ceremony for Jeff Kent, the Giants and Diamondbacks battled to a 1-1 tie through 4 1/2 innings of Game 2 until San Francisco ended Mitch Bratt’s day with a single by Grant McCray, a walk to Osleivis Basabe and a sacrifice bunt by Christian Koss.

After pinch hitter Drew Gilbert worked a walk from reliever Gerardo Carrillo to load the bases, Devers gave the Giants the lead for good with an RBI single. Eldridge then singled home a pair of runs for a 4-1 advantage.

Bratt (1-3) was charged with three runs on three hits in 4 1/3 innings. He walked two and struck out two.

Making his major league debut after a promotion from Double-A Richmond, Giants right-hander Yunior Marte worked 4 2/3 innings, limiting the Diamondbacks to one run and three hits. He walked two and struck out three.

Reiver Sanmartin (2-0), who relieved Marte with two outs in the fifth with the game tied at 1-1, was credited with the win after facing just one batter, striking out Game 1 hero Lars Nootbaar to lead into the Giants’ uprising.

The clubs traded runs in the seventh, after which Giants relievers Carson Seymour and Dylan Smith slammed the door on the Diamondbacks, sending them to just their third defeat in 13 games against San Francisco in the season series.

Gilbert, who drew his second consecutive walk, scored the Giants’ seventh-inning run. He also walked and scored in a two-run eighth.

Devers and Eldridge drove in the eighth-inning runs.

Basabe scored twice for the Giants, who completed a 4-3 homestand.

Ildemaro Vargas had two hits for the Diamondbacks, who like the Giants will get a rare Sunday off.

Kevin McGonigle, Javier Baez help
Tigers tame Dodgers

Kevin McGonigle delivered a bases-loaded single in the ninth to drive in the winning run as the host Detroit Tigers topped the Los Angeles Dodgers 2-1 on Saturday afternoon.

Javier Baez scored both runs for Detroit, which had lost eight of its previous nine games. Gleyber Torres drove in the other run for Detroit.

Kenley Jansen (4-5) picked up the win in relief. Starter Keider Montero gave up one run and four hits in 5 1/3 innings. Andrew Sears tossed 2 2/3 innings of scoreless relief.

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Freddie Freeman drove in the lone run as the Dodgers lost for the fourth time in five games. Los Angeles has dropped 10 one-run games since the All-Star break.

Starter Blake Snell gave up one run and three hits in five innings while striking out 10.

With two out and a runner on second in the top of the ninth, Teoscar Hernandez hit a deep fly ball that left fielder Baez tracked down to keep the score tied.

Baez then led off the ninth against Jack Dreyer (5-2) with a double down the left field line. Max Clark’s sacrifice bunt moved Baez to third. Torres was given an intentional walk and Hao-Yu Lee drew a walk to load the bases. McGonigle then ripped a 1-2 pitch into the left-center field gap to end the game.

The Tigers scored in the third but came away lamenting they didn’t get more runs. Baez drew a leadoff walk and Clark reached on an error after laying down a bunt. Torres ripped a ground-rule double to the opposite field that knocked in Baez.

Snell briefly left the field after Lee popped out. After walking McGonigle, Snell then proceeded to strike out Dillon Dingler and Eduardo Valencia to leave the runners stranded.

Los Angeles broke through in the sixth. Alek Thomas led off with an opposite-field double and moved to third on a groundout. Freeman then ripped a single to bring in Thomas. The Dodgers eventually loaded the bases with one out but Tyler Holton induced Tommy Edman to bounce into a double play.

Rays outscore
Padres in wild 7th, hold on to win series

Chandler Simpson slashed a tiebreaking, two-out single to cap a four-run, seventh-inning rally, lifting the Tampa Bay Rays to a wild 7-6 victory and a series win over the San Diego Padres on Saturday afternoon in St. Petersburg, Fla.

Down 6-3 after San Diego’s three-run top half of the seventh, Yandy Diaz lasered a bases-loaded single off the center field wall.

San Diego second baseman Luis Rengifo then threw home, but his right leg buckled as he turned. The toss went wide and to the backstop for an error to tie it at 6. Rengifo then had to be carted off the field with the injury.

After that delay, Simpson slashed a two-out single for a 7-6 lead off reliever Adrian Morejon.

Tampa Bay’s Jonathan Aranda hit a tape-measure home run, and Junior Caminero ripped his 36th to tie Houston’s Yordan Alvarez for the American League lead. Liam Hicks and Taylor Walls had two hits.

Starting pitcher Nick Martinez allowed three runs on seven hits in six innings with four strikeouts and no walks

Reliever Kevin Kelly (6-3) pitched 1 2/3 scoreless innings, while Bryan Baker recorded his 39th save.

San Diego’s Dustin Harris had three hits, two runs and a stolen base. Ty France had two hits, including a two-run homer. Manny Machado had two hits and two RBIs.

Bradgley Rodriguez (3-3) allowed four runs (one earned) on three hits and a walk without retiring a batter.

Starter Walker Buehler tossed five-plus innings and yielded three runs on seven hits with three strikeouts.

With one out in the third in a 1-1 game, the home side took its second lead when Aranda hit a 453-foot solo shot to center. His 17th homer came off Buehler’s change-up and landed in the netting above the blue batter’s eye.

In the sixth, France put the visitors ahead for the first time by angling Martinez’s 93 mph fastball over the 322-foot mark down the right field line, his 100th career home run, for a 3-2 lead.

However, Caminero reached down in the zone and lined a 3-2 cutter – with a 17-degree launch angle — over the center field wall to match Alvarez’s total.

Fernando Tatis Jr. put down a perfect bunt in the seventh to fill the bases with no outs. With one out, Machado grounded a single to right to score Rengifo and Harris.

A double steal by Tatis and Machado put the Padres up 6-3 as they sent nine batters to the plate.

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