Devon Travis of the Toronto Blue Jays turns a double play in the fourth inning over J.D. Martinez of the Boston Red Sox on Aug. 7, 2018.Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images
The Toronto Blue Jays went hammer and tongs against baseball’s best team, the mighty Boston Red Sox, on Tuesday night.
But as has often been the case this season, a solid effort ended in despair with the Red Sox winning 10-7 in 10 innings in the first of a three-game series at steamy Rogers Centre.
With the score 5-5 in the top of the 10th, Mitch Moreland clubbed a three-run home run off Toronto’s Ken Giles, the heir apparent to Roberto Osuna as the Blue Jays closer, to deep right to put a severe damper on what had been a rollicking affair for close to 32,000 fans.
Giles’s night got even worse when Jackie Bradley Jr. added a two-run home run.
Toronto showed some resolve in the game, trailing 5-4 heading into the bottom of the ninth and facing fearsome Boston reliever Craig Kimbrel. Justin Smoak pounded a 3-0 pitch over the wall in right that tied the game and sent it into extras.
Marcus Stroman started for Toronto and was excellent, restricting one of baseball’s top offences to just two hits and one unearned run over seven innings. Of the 20 outs he recorded, 16 came via the ground ball.
Stroman came out to the mound for the start of the eighth but was quickly yanked before he threw a pitch after suffering a blister to his right middle finger.
“It’s something I’ve been dealing with all year to be honest with you,” Stroman said afterward about his blister issue. “Just haven’t said anything.
“I’m a competitor, it’s not something I’m going to let deter me from making my next start. I’ll do everything I can over the next four days and be back out there on Sunday, competing.”
Stroman turned over a 3-1 lead to reliever Ryan Tepera, who gave up four runs, including a three-run home run shot by J.D. Martinez, which put Boston in front 5-3.
For Martinez, it was his MLB-leading 34th home run, part of a 3-for-5 evening at the plate along with four RBIs.
“J.D. Martinez is unreal right now,” Stroman said. “He’s the hottest hitter I think I’ve ever seen live. It’s tough to navigate that lineup.”