TORONTO: Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit a three-run home run, Yusei Kikuchi pitched six innings to snap a seven-start winless streak and the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Baltimore Orioles 6-5 on Thursday to split their four-game series.
Adley Rutschman homered from both sides of the plate, but the Orioles lost their second straight game.
Baltimore scored 19 runs in the first 20 innings of this series but only five over the final 16 innings.
Rutschman hit a solo homer off the left-handed Kikuchi (3-5) in the sixth inning and added a two-run blast off righty Zach Pop in the eighth. The homers were his 11th and 12th this season.
Rutschman also homered twice in a 3-2 home loss to Toronto on May 13. Both of those came against Blue Jays right-hander José Berríos.
Kikuchi allowed one run and four hits. He walked one and struck out six.
Yimi García gave up a two-out, two-run home run to pinch-hitter Ryan O’Hearn in the ninth but struck out pinch-hitter Kyle Stowers to earn his fourth save in five chances.
O’Hearn’s homer was his eighth of the season.
Guerrero reached base three times as the Blue Jays became the last AL East team to record 30 wins.
Making his major league debut, Baltimore’s Cade Povich allowed six runs and five hits in 5 1/3 innings. He walked four and struck out two just hours after the O’s selected his contract from Triple-A Norfolk and optioned lefty Nick Vespi to Triple-A.
Povich (0-1) needed just four pitches to strike out leadoff batter Davis Schneider, and he retired the first five batters in order.
Guerrero made Povich pay for a pair of walks in the third by hitting a two-out home run. It was the first hit allowed by the left-hander.
Guerrero’s opposite-field homer was his seventh.
Toronto made it 4-0 in the fourth on back-to-back bloop hits by Daulton Varsho and Isiah Kiner-Falefa.
Justin Turner singled in the sixth and Povich exited after walking Varsho. Dillon Tate came on and retired Kiner-Falefa but gave up a two-run single to Ernie Clement.
UP NEXT
Orioles: Baltimore did not named a starter for Friday’s game at Tampa Bay, the opener of a four-game series. RHP Aaron Civale (2-4, 5.37 ERA) is scheduled to go for the Rays.
Blue Jays: RHP Chris Bassitt (6-6, 4.13 ERA) is expected to start against his former team on Friday night when Toronto begins a three-game series at Oakland. RHP Luis Medina (0-0, 0.00) is scheduled to go for the Athletics.
___
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed - Associated Press)