TORONTO (AP) — Yandy Díaz hit a three-run home run and the Tampa Bay Rays — starting an unprecedented nine Latin American players on Roberto Clemente Day — routed Toronto 11-0 on Thursday to pull within a half-game of the Blue Jays in the wild-card chase.
Clemente, the late Hall of Fame outfielder from Puerto Rico, was a two-time World Series winner and NL MVP who played 18 seasons with Pittsburgh.
Activated off the injured list after missing 15 games because of a left shoulder impingement, Shane McClanahan (12-5) pitched five shutout innings. He allowed three hits, struck out five and walked one.
Isaac Paredes hit a solo home run and added an RBI single as the Rays (80-63) won the fifth and final game of the series. Toronto (81-63) will play a four-game series at Tampa Bay, starting next Thursday.
Seattle (80-62), which holds one of the three AL wild-card spots, was idle Thursday, but moved percentage points ahead of Toronto.
Díaz homered in a four-run second inning, his ninth. Paredes made it 5-0 with a leadoff blast in the seventh, his 19th
Kevin Gausman (12-10) was the loser.
WHITE SOX 8, GUARDIANS 2
CLEVELAND (AP) — Elvis Andrus hit one of Chicago’s five home runs off rookie Hunter Gaddis — and backed up a pregame swipe at the Guardians —to help cut Cleveland’s lead in the AL Central to three games.
Andrus connected in the fifth inning off Gaddis (0-2) — the first Cleveland pitcher to allow five homers in a game since Luis Tiant in 1969.
On Wednesday, Andrus raised some eyebrows by telling reporters he expected the first-place Guardians “to crumble, the closer we get.”
Gavin Sheets hit a two-run homer in the second to start Chicago’s homer spree against Gaddis, and Andrew Vaughn, Yoán Moncada and Yasmani Grandal joined Andrus by hitting shots off the right-hander.
Lance Lynn (7-5) limited the Guardians to two run and six hits in 6 1/3 innings. The right-hander is 5-0 in his last seven starts. Cleveland had its winning streak stopped at six.
MARLINS 5, PHILLIES 3
MIAMI (AP) — Kyle Schwarber hit his NL-leading 38th homer for Philadelphia in the playoff-contending Phillies’ loss to Miami.
Schwarber connected off Pablo López in the sixth with a solo shot to right-center.
Miami rookie Jordan Groshans hit his first major league homer and Bryan De La Cruz also went deep and had four RBIs.
López (9-10) completed 6 2/3 innings, allowing two runs and six hits. Dylan Floro pitched the ninth for his fifth save. Noah Syndergaad (9-10) was the loser.
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