ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) All-Star Austin Meadows hit his 27th homer, leading the Tampa Bay over the Toronto Blue Jays 6-4 on Thursday night and maintaining the Rays’ half-game lead over Oakland for the AL’s top wild card.
Meadows homered off Buddy Boshers (0-3) leading off the seventh for a 5-4 lead and added an RBI double in the eighth against Ryan Tepera. Meadows also broke a tie in a 2-0 win over Baltimore in Tuesday’s doubleheader nightcap.
Tampa Bay, seeking its first postseason appearance since 2013, opened a 1+-game lead over Cleveland, which is third in the wild-card standings. The game drew just 5,962, the second-smallest crowd this season at Tropicana Field.
Rookie Bo Bichette had his second multi-homer game for the Blue Jays, who have lost four straight and 13 of 16. Toronto is on a pace for 99 losses.
Bichette homered in a 13-pitch at-bat leading off the first and the score 4-4 with a two-run drive in the seventh off Oliver Drake (4-2).
Emilio Pagan allowed a double to Reese McGuire in the ninth and walked Derek Fisher before retiring Cavan Biggio on a game-ending flyout with runners at the corners. Pagan got his 18th save in 25 chances.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. rolled to his right on a nifty slide to complete a two-out triple in the first and cut Toronto’s deficit to 3-2 with an RBI single in the sixth.
RARE COMPANY
Tommy Pham swiped third in the seventh to join B.J. Upton (2007, `11, `12) as the only players in Rays history to have 20 steals and 20 homers in the same season. Pham later left with right forearm tightness.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Blue Jays: INF Lourdes Gurriel Jr. (left quadriceps strain) is to play in a simulated game Friday.
Rays: LHP Blake Snell (left elbow bone chips surgery) will make his first rehab start Saturday with Triple-A Durham. … CF Kevin Kiermaier fouled a ball off his right foot and was hit by two pitches on his right foot but stayed in the game. … C Travis d’Arnaud left with neck and shoulder stiffness after being hit a foul ball in the eighth.
UP NEXT
Blue Jays: RHP Clay Buchholz (1-3) will make his third start Friday since returning from right shoulder inflammation.
Rays: Two-way player Brendan McKay (2-3) will start or follow an opener. The left-hander was shut down for around 10 days at the end of August due to left shoulder fatigue that resulted in him getting a cortisone shot.
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