TORONTO — Boston slugger David Ortiz went out with a bang in his final regular-season game in Toronto.
Ortiz drilled a three-run home run in the sixth inning, Jackie Bradley Jr. and Hanley Ramirez also connected, and the Red Sox outslugged Toronto 11-8 Sunday, reclaiming a two-game lead over the Blue Jays in the AL East.
“Wins are wins no matter what but some wins are different,” Ortiz said. “Some wins can get you some momentum.”
Ortiz put Boston up 10-8 with a drive off Joaquin Benoit. It was his 41st career home run at Rogers Centre, his highest total at any road stadium.
With his 535th career home run, Ortiz moved past Jimmie Foxx into sole possession of 18th place on baseball’s career list. He also increased his RBI total to 110, the most by a player age 40 or above since Dave Winfield had 108 for Toronto in 1992.
Edwin Encarnacion hit two home runs and Troy Tulowitzki hit his third career grand slam, but the Blue Jays couldn’t force a tie in the standings. Toronto and Baltimore are tied for the lead in the wild-card race.
Toronto finishes the regular season with three games at Fenway Park.
Pedroia and Xander Bogaerts singled against Bo Schultz (0-1) before Benoit came on to face Ortiz, who swung and missed the first pitch but connected on the second.
ORIOLES 3, TIGERS 1 Chris Tillman pitched six impressive innings in his return from the disabled list, leading the visiting Orioles to the victory. Michael Bourn and Jonathan Schoop hit home runs off Justin Verlander (14-8) as Baltimore moved into a tie with Toronto for second in the AL East.
RAYS 4, YANKEES 2 Corey Dickerson hit a two-run home run, Matt Andriese won for the first time since June and the visiting Rays stopped the Yankees’ seven-game winning streak.
ANGELS 3, RANGERS 2 Andrelton Simmons hit two solo home runs, sending Jered Weaver and the host Angels to the victory.
MARINERS 3, ATHLETICS 2 Ketel Marte hit a tiebreaking single in the ninth inning, helping visiting Seattle to its fifth consecutive victory. ROYALS 2, WHITE SOX 0 Ian Kennedy and three relievers combined on a two-hitter, helping the Royals beat Chris Sale and the host White Sox.
INDIANS 7, TWINS 1 Cleveland ace Corey Kluber struck out 10 in seven innings, and Carlos Santana hit a three-run home run for the visiting Indians.
NATIONAL LEAGUE
GIANTS 5, DIAMONDBACKS 3 Matt Moore struck out 11 in seven innings and Hunter Pence hit a key two-run double, helping visiting San Francisco to the series sweep.
METS 10, BRAVES 3 Yoenis Cespedes hit a grand slam for visiting New York, and Seth Lugo won his fourth consecutive start.
BREWERS 2, CARDINALS 1 Ryan Braun hit a tiebreaking home run in the ninth inning, and the visiting Brewers dropped the Cardinals back in the NL wild-card race.
MARLINS 3, DODGERS 0 Jose Urena pitched 8 2/3 innings of four-hit ball, leading host Miami to the victory. Christian Yelich had two hits and drove in a run for the Marlins, who have won three of four.
NATIONALS 3, PHILLIES 2 Gio Gonzalez pitched seven sharp innings for host Washington, and Anthony Rendon doubled home the tiebreaking run.
REDS 8, PIRATES 0 Tyler Holt and Brandon Phillips had three hits apiece, leading Brandon Finnegan and the visiting Reds to the victory. ROCKIES 3, PADRES 2 (10) Mark Reynolds hit a home run to lead off the 10th inning and the visiting Rockies salvaged a split of a four-game series.
INTERLEAGUE
CUBS 9, ASTROS 5 Jorge Soler and Addison Russell homered to lead visiting Chicago to a victory over Houston, moving the Cubs closer to clinching the NL Central. Soler hit a solo home run as part of Chicago’s four-run third, and Russell hit a two-run shot — his 20th of the season — in the fourth as the Cubs built a 9-0 lead. Chicago’s magic number is five.
Sports on 09/12/2016