TORONTO – Yangervis Solarte, Teoscar Hernandez and Kevin Pillar each hit solo home runs to lead the Toronto Blue Jays to a 7-2 win over the Texas Rangers on Sunday at Rogers Centre.
J.A. Happ (4-1) allowed two earned runs on five hits while striking out nine over seven innings as the Blue Jays (15-12) snapped their four-game skid. Ryan Tepera and Aaron Loup each pitched a scoreless inning of relief.
The loss halted the Rangers’ (11-18) season-high three-game win streak.
Randal Grichuk showed off his defensive prowess in the first inning, diving and cradling the ball between his body and glove to rob Isiah Kiner-Falefa of extra bases and then doubled up Delino DeShields at second for the inning-ending double play.
The Blue Jays right-fielder then contributed offensively, scoring Pillar from third on a sacrifice fly in the second to give Toronto a 2-1 lead. Grichuk, who entered Sunday’s game mired in a 0-for-18 slump, went 2 for 3 at the plate with a pair of singles.
Hernandez took Martin Perez’s 0-1 pitch over the wall in right for his fourth homer of the season in the third and Pillar led off the next inning with a solo shot, his fourth, giving Toronto a 4-1 lead.
Perez (2-3) went four innings, allowing four earned on five hits while striking out two and walking four.
The Rangers got to within two in the sixth when Kiner-Falefa’s ground out scored DeShields from third, but that’s as close as they’d get. Russell Martin restored the Blue Jays’ three-run lead in the bottom half, reaching on an error and then he later scored.
Toronto added to its lead in the seventh as Justin Smoak scored a run on a sac fly and Solarte delivered an RBI single giving Toronto a 7-2 cushion.
Renato Nunez got Texas on the board in the second putting Happ’s first pitch into the second deck for his first home run of the season. Solarte responded for the Blue Jays in the bottom half of the inning taking Perez’s change-up deep for his seventh home run of the season.
Notes: The Blue Jays optioned 2B Devon Travis to triple-A Buffalo before the game and recalled RHP Carlos Ramirez from the Bisons to add another arm to its over-worked bullpen. … Toronto opens an eight-game road trip on Monday when they visit the Minnesota Twins.
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