(Toronto) George Springer set the tone with a home run as the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Oakland A’s 12-1 on Sunday.
Springer hit an 11It is homer on second by Luis Medina (1-7), who gave up four runs in five innings. Medina allowed four hits and seven walks.
The Jays extended their lead late in the first, with Whit Merrifield crossing the board on an error.
In the second, Springer scored a runner when he hit a double play. In the third it was Matt Chapman’s turn to record a run, the result of a poor throw by Medina.
Oakland struggled in the sixth, with a Tony Kemp home run. In the bottom of the inning, though, Springer restored the cushion by going in there with a sacrifice ball.
Santiago Espinal added an automatic double for two points in the seventh.
Other players joined the party in the eighth: Bo Bichette hit a one-run single and Cavan Biggio hit a three-run homer, before and after a productive option by Vladimir Guerrero.
John Schneider’s club have lost just once in five games.
Springer became the second-highest home run of all time with 55 home runs in one game.
He and Alfonso Soriano were both at 54. The record of 81 belongs to Rickey Henderson.
A member of four-star teams, Springer was the 2017 World Series Most Valuable Player with Houston.
Yusei Kikuchi (7-2) struck out the A’s first 10 batters. In seven innings, he struck out eight batters, allowing just one run and two hits.
The next visitors to the Rogers Center will be the San Francisco Giants, Tuesday through Thursday.
