A's secure AL's 2nd wild card

Sonny Gray saved his best start in five months for the final day of the regular season.

And the 25-year-old pitcher celebrated by leading the Oakland Athletics into the post-season for the third year in a row.

The A's on Sunday secured the American League's second wild-card spot behind Kansas City, officially eliminating Seattle from playoff contention.

The Mariners were victorious, 4-1 over the visiting Los Angeles Angels. Felix Hernandez spun five shutout innings to capture the American League earned-run average title. He lowered his ERA to 2.14 on Sunday, besting Chicago White Sox lefty Chris Sale (2.17).

Gray tossed his second complete-game shutout of the season and second against the Rangers in Texas in Sunday's 4-0 victory.

Athletics players storm the field after securing a playoff spot beating the hometown Texas Rangers 4-0 on Sunday. Oakland will battle Kansas City in a winner-take-all AL wild-card matchup on Tuesday night. (Rick Yeatts/Getty Images)

The right-hander blanked the Rangers on six hits while striking out six. Gray induced 15 groundouts and threw 74 of his 103 pitches for strikes.

"That was a huge," said A's starting pitcher Jon Lester, who has pitched in two World Series for Boston. "That's one of the more impressive games I've gotten to watch in a while."

On April 28 in Texas, he two-hit Texas over nine innings, walking one and fanning six. Gray threw 108 pitches that day, with 73 in the strike zone.

For Gray, who finishes the season with 14 victories and a 3.08 earned-run average, it was his first win in seven starts and just the second victory over the final two months of the season.

Oakland made the last few days interesting, seemingly doing everything it could to keep the Mariners in contention and potentially setting up a tiebreaker for Monday in Seattle.

On Aug. 10, the A's boasted the best record in the majors at 72-44, good for a four-game lead in the AL West Division and 11-game bulge in the wild-card standings. But entering Sunday, Oakland had won only 15 of its previous 45 contests.

"Now the pressure's off, and now we just go out there and play," said Gray.

Lester, who was acquired from Boston ahead of the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline, will start Tuesday's win-or-go-home wild-card game at Kansas City (8:07 p.m. ET) against Royals ace James Shields. Lester won 16 games with a career-low 2.46 ERA this season, including a 6-4 record in 11 starts for the A's. Shields went 14-8 with a 3.21 ERA.

The winner will open a best-of-five American League Division Series against the Los Angeles Angels in Anaheim, Calif.

National League wild card

Canadians Russell Martin and John Axford along with their Pittsburgh Pirates teammates will face Buster Posey and the San Francisco Giants in Wednesday's winner-take-all wild-card contest in Pittsburgh at 8:07 p.m. ET.

The winner will face the NL East champion Washington Nationals in the division series.

American League

The Detroit Tigers clinched the Central Division with a 3-0 win over Minnesota on Sunday.

They will open the post-season in Baltimore on Thursday, with Chris Tillman getting the start for the home side. David Price likely will get the start for the Tigers.

National League

St. Louis, which clinched the Central Division before taking the field in Arizona on Sunday, by virtue of Cincinnati's 4-1 win over Pittsburgh earlier in the day, battles 21-game winner Clayton Kershaw and the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 1 of the NLDS on Friday in California.

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Canadian Justin Morneau wins NL batting title

Justin Morneau played his first home game with the Colorado Rockies on April 4, a memorable 12-2 drubbing of the Arizona Diamondbacks.

After the game, the first baseman had his No. 33 jersey framed and sent to his good friend, fellow Canadian Larry Walker, who won the 1997 National League MVP award and three batting titles while playing for the Rockies.

Throughout the season, the picture hung on a wall in the living room of Walker's home in West Palm Beach, Fla. Each morning, it served as a reminder to check how Morneau performed at the plate the previous day.

That won't be necessary on Monday as Walker was fully aware what was at stake during Sunday's season finale in Los Angeles.

Morneau wasn't in the starting lineup for a second consecutive day but did enter the afternoon game in the eighth inning and grounded out as a pinch hitter. He ended the day with a .319 average and his first batting title in the major leagues.

"It hasn't sunk in yet," Morneau, who bested Pittsburgh's Josh Harrison (.315) and Pirates teammate Andrew McCutchen (.314), told reporters after a 10-5 Colorado loss. He's the third Canadian to win a batting title, joining Tip O'Neill, a two-time league leader in 1887 and '88, and Walker.

Morneau, 33, last played a full game on Friday when he homered against the Dodgers and went 2-for-3 to raise his average to .319. Harrison was at .318 after going 1-for-4 in Cincinnati.

On Saturday, Rockies manager Walt Weiss decided to sit Morneau in an effort to help secure the batting championship. Both he and Morneau faced harsh criticism for the player's absence for much of the weekend but Weiss, a former Colorado shortstop, stood firmly by his decision.

On Sunday morning, Houston Astros management told second baseman and American League batting leader Jose Altuve he would be held out of the lineup but reversed its decision before first pitch against the New York Mets. Altuve had two hits to win the title and finish the season with a .341 average.

"I think this is way better than just sitting on the bench," said Altuve. "If you want something, you've got to win it on the field."

Weiss added he was aware Pittsburgh might have had to play a tiebreaker Monday against St. Louis to decide the NL Central and statistics from that game would have counted, giving Harrison a chance to catch Morneau.

"The way I look at it," Weiss told reporters before Sunday's game, "the guy has experienced a career-threatening injury and if he's in a position to win a batting title, I'm going to try to make sure he does."

On July 7, 2010, Morneau suffered a concussion while playing for the Minnesota Twins when his head banged against the knee of then-Toronto Blue Jays second baseman John McDonald.

Concussions

Concussions and other injuries derailed Morneau's 2010 and 2011 campaigns and he struggled last season with Minnesota and Pittsburgh before signing a two-year, $12.5-million US deal, with a third-year option, in Colorado.

"He's a success story, he's bounced back," Walker, who "didn't think twice" about allowing Morneau to wear his No. 33 in Colorado this season, said in a phone interview with CBCSports.ca last week. Morneau played 152 games last season. "I think what he's gone through these last few years … it's been a pretty good year. I'm glad I told him to go to Colorado."

Morneau, who was the American League MVP in 2006, also hit 17 home runs and 32 doubles while driving in 82 runs in 135 games this season.

The native of New Westminster, B.C., is the seventh Rockies player to win the batting crown. Morneau gives Colorado its ninth batting title in 22 years and back-to-back champions after Michael Cuddyer hit .331 last season to lead the NL.

Here's a list of the Rockies batting champions:

• 1993: Andres Galarraga, .370
• 1998: Larry Walker, .363
• 1999: Larry Walker, .379
• 2000: Todd Helton, .372
• 2001: Larry Walker, .350
• 2007: Matt Holliday, .340
• 2010: Carlos Gonzalez, .336
• 2013: Michael Cuddyer, .331

Morneau's feat marked just the third time since 1876 that the NL has been led with an average below .320. In 1988, the late Tony Gwynn hit .313 for the San Diego Padres.

Morneau said he was most impressed with his consistency throughout the season. He hit over .300 in five of the season's six months, including .361 in September.

Morneau's 2014 monthly production

MONTH	AVG	OBP	HR	RBI
April	.347	.371	6	22
May	.269	.333	4	11
June	.327	.343	3	25
July	.315	.373	0	5
August	.301	.359	1	6
September	.361	.422	3	13

And no one can say playing half his games in the thin air at Coors Field in Colorado was a major factor in winning a batting crown as Morneau hit .327 at home and .309 on the road."Sometimes you get hot for a while and hit .450," he said, "but I think I was consistent all season and I focused and concentrated on that."

"The Coors [Field] thing is what it is," Walker said. "[The Rockies] are a major league ball team I got to play on and where [it plays] I can't control. And thank God I did good [there] because if I didn't play good with all the benefits that you have from playing there, I probably wouldn't be talking to you right now because I would have been a minor leaguer for life."

Morneau, on the other hand, will be a Rockie for at least one more season.

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Idle Justin Morneau maintains NL batting lead

Justin Morneau might sit his way to a National League batting title.

Colorado Rockies manager Walt Weiss kept the Canadian first baseman off the field Saturday night against the Dodgers in Los Angeles.

Earlier in the day, Pittsburgh third baseman Josh Harrison went 1-for-4 to give him a .318 batting average entering Sunday's final day of the major league regular season. Teammate Andrew McCutchen went 1-for-3 and is at .314.

Did Weiss sit Morneau, who tops the league at .319, to protect his lead?

Some would say yes but Weiss, a former Rockies shortstop, told reporters on Saturday that he wanted to get September call-up Kyle Parker in the lineup for one of the weekend games.

So, Parker started in right field while outfielder Michael Cuddyer, who won the NL batting crown last season with a .331 average, manned first base.

It's possible Morneau could sit again for Sunday's 4:10 p.m. ET contest, depending if the New Westminster, B.C. native is still the batting leader. The Pirates wrap up their series at Cincinnati in a 1:10 p.m. start.

"We'll see where he stands at that point," said Weiss of the 33-year-old Morneau. "He has worked very hard to put himself in this position.

"People talk about backing into a batting title and all of that stuff. I don't think there is such a thing. It takes six months to win it."

Scheduled to start against Colorado on Sunday is Dodgers right-hander Zack Greinke, who sports a 16-8 record and 2.74 earned-run average this season. He's also owned the left-handed hitting Morneau, holding him to a .200 average (9-for-45).

In Cincinnati, the Reds are expected to start 19 game winner Johnny Cueto, who boasts a 2.29 ERA this season, against Harrison and McCutchen. Harrison is 6-for-14 (.429) in his career versus Cueto while McCutchen is 16-for-56 (.286) with four home runs.

Morneau, who was the American League MVP in 2006, is vying for his first batting crown. If successful, he would be the seventh different Colorado player to win. Fellow Canadian Larry Walker did it in a Rockies uniform in 1998, 1999 and 2001.

Recently, Walker sent Morneau a picture of a bat he received after winning one of his batting titles.

"I was gonna send a picture of all three of them," Walker told CBCSports.ca earlier this week, "but only one of them is still shiny, one's really tarnished and I don't know where the third one is."

In a more serious tone, the native of Maple Ridge, B.C., said it would only be human nature for Morneau to find out how Harrison and McCutchen fared on Sunday before Colorado faced the Dodgers.

"If he sees an 0-for-4 [beside Harrison's name] it might ease his mind," Walker said. "If he sees a 2-for-3, it might pump him up more and bring back that competitive edge that he's wishing he had if he was in a pennant race."

That's providing Morneau even steps to the plate on Sunday.

Was it wrong for Walt Weiss to sit NL batting leader Justin Morneau on Saturday?

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Jays' J.A. Happ earns 11th win in final start of season

After walking off the mound for the last time this season, J.A. Happ couldn't help but reflect.

From struggling in spring training with back problems and starting the season in the bullpen, the Toronto Blue Jays left-hander closed his year on a high Saturday, throwing 6 1/3 innings of four-hit baseball in a 4-2 victory over the visiting Baltimore Orioles.

"It's pretty unbelievable," Happ said of the difference between the way the season started and ended. "It's kind of hard to imagine yourself in that position when you're in some tough circumstances, sometimes it's tough to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Should the Blue Jays exercise J.A. Happ's $5.2 million US option for 2015?

"You've got to keep having faith and keep working, it pays off. It felt good to walk off the mound today with the fans cheering the way they were, and to have the lead in the game. It was great."

Happ (11-11) recorded a quality start in each of his final seven outings at Rogers Centre this season and had a 2.47 earned-run average over that stretch. He believes staying healthy, altering the angle of his arm on pitches and being able to adjust to hitters throughout a game have been keys to his success.

"I feel like I've showed, over the second half especially, when healthy I'm able to make adjustments," Happ said. "That's the biggest part of the game, I think, is constantly trying to be comfortable and make the adjustments that the hitters are making to you."

MONTH	W	L	ERA	IP	SO	WHIP
September	2	3	3.62	32.1	26	1.08
Pre-all-star break	7	5	4.91	77	64	1.55
Post-all-star break	4	6	3.56	81	69	1.14

Asked if he thinks he's made a strong case for the Blue Jays picking up his $6.7 million US option for the 2015 season, Happ said: "Yeah, I hope so."

Toronto manager John Gibbons said he's certainly going to make the case to Blue Jays general manager Alex Anthopolous to keep the 31-year-old veteran with the team for another season.

"I like everything about him," Gibbons said. "I think he's really come into his own."

Other than giving up a run in the second inning on a triple and a single and surrendering a booming solo home run to Adam Jones in the sixth inning, Happ was in command. He struck out four, walked two and threw just 93 pitches. He lowered his ERA to 4.22 for the season.

"He was really good today but he's been really good all year," Gibbons said. "He really kicked it in after the all-star break. He's proven he's a pitcher that can go pretty deep into games.

"It couldn't happen to a better guy. He's a real pro. He's really dedicated and he really works at it.

Happ and the Blue Jays (83-78) benefited from some sloppy defence by the American League East champion Orioles (95-66), who committed three errors which led to two of Toronto's runs.

Wei-Yin Chen (16-6) took the loss, yielding three runs, one of them unearned, over six innings.

Toronto left-fielder Kevin Pillar had two hits and scored a pair of runs, including an insurance run on a head-first slide in the seventh inning that was originally ruled an out but was reversed on a replay.

"It was one of those in-between fly balls and kind of playing with nothing to lose," Pillar said of the play that made it 4-2. "The home plate collision is a real fine line and with catchers not trying to block the plate and staying out of the way. He didn't give me much of a lane, just a little bit of a lane.

"I'm trying to avoid sliding head first but sometimes you've got to do what you've got to do."

Jose Reyes, who supplied the sacrifice fly for that insurance run, had another run batted in, driving home Steve Tolleson with a double in the fifth inning to put Toronto up for good at 2-1.

Aaron Sanchez had 1 2/3 innings of hitless relief and Casey Janssen worked a perfect ninth for his 25th save as the Blue Jays picked up their second straight victory.

Toronto closes out the season Sunday afternoon looking for the three-game sweep of Baltimore.

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Playoff contenders chase: Indians, Mariners win

The Cleveland Indians sent their ace Corey Kluber to the mound Friday in their bid to stay alive in the hunt to play beyond baseball's regular season.

Meanwhile the Seattle Mariners, back home after dropping three of four games in Toronto, turned to their second best starter Hisashi Iwakuma as they hosted the Los Angeles Angels. Like the Indians, the Mariners needed to capture their final three games all the while hoping and praying that the Oakland A's would continue their September swoon and fail to win any other their final three games.

It was win or go home for the Indians who returned to the playoffs last season under manager Terry Francona and for the Mariners who haven't visited the post-season since 2001 when they lost the American League Championship series to the New York Yankees in five games.

• CLINCHED DIVISION: Orioles, Angels, Nationals, Dodgers
• IN PLAYOFFS: Tigers, Cardinals, Pirates, Giants, Royals
• WILD CARD HOLDERS: A's
• STILL ALIVE: Seattle

Corey Kluber more than lived up to his end of the bargain. Through eight scoreless innings the powerful right-hander shut down the Tampa Bay Rays. He ended the eighth inning with his 11th strikeout of the game, helping the Indians to break the Major League record for strikeouts in a season, 1,429. It was one better than the mark established by the Detroit Tigers just last year. Cody Allen pitched the ninth for the save as Jose Ramirez's first-inning homer provided the only run of the game.

However Cleveland's reprieve was short-lived as first Kansas City clinched at least a wild card spot with a 3-1 victory over the White Sox in Chicago. Jeremy Guthrie tossed seven scoreless innings to pace the triumph. It meant that the Royals were headed to post-season play -- they still have a chance to catch Detroit for the Central Division title -- for the first time since 1985, the longest drought in North American major sports. Then Oakland, occupying the second wild card, spot ended the Indians' final hopes. They, too, rolled to victory, 6-2 in Texas as Scott Kazmir picked up his 15th win of the season and Josh Reddick had three RBI. Cleveland was out.

Last team still standing outside the playoff circle was the Seattle Mariners. The Oakland win cut their tragic number to 1.

A Mariner loss or one more A's win would finally reduce the American League playoff field to five.

After opening a 4-0 lead over the Angels, Seattle hung on. Fernando Rodney allowed a run in the ninth but closed out a 4-3 win. The tragic number was still one.

Another day off the calendar and another contender -- this time Cleveland -- eliminated. 

Now only Seattle has a chance to join the post-season party. Two games to go. No room for error. An exciting way to wrap up the regular season after game number 160.

PLAYOFF SCENARIO: This we know for sure.

• Washington and the Los Angeles Angels have wrapped up home field advantage for the National and American League, respectively.
• Those two teams, the National and the Angels, will meet the winner of the game between the two wild card teams in their league.
• Baltimore will host the AL Central Division winner, still to be determined.
• The Los Angeles Dodgers will meet the NL Central Division winner, still to be determined. 

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Justin Morneau back on top in batting title race

A three man battle with three, now two, days left on the schedule.

The pride of British Columbia Justin Morneau of the Colorado Rockies is going swing for swing with a pair of Pittsburgh Pirates for the National League batting crown. With each player having three games remaining at the start of play Friday, Pittsburgh's Josh Harrison had taken over the lead hitting.319, with Morneau second at .317, followed by Andrew McCutchen, at .314.

Morneau is bidding to become the third Canadian to win a Major League batting title after Larry Walker (1998, '99 and 2001), and 19th century star Tip O'Neill, a two-time league leader in 1887 and '88.

Thursday while Morneau and the Rockies had an off-day, Harrison picked up three hits to edge ahead of Morneau by two percentage points. McCutchen, with one hit, gained ground as well.

Here's how each player fared on Friday as the Pirates met the Reds in Cincinnati and the Rockies played later in Los Angeles against the Dodgers.

Josh Harrison: Flew out; lined out, struck out; singled. 1-for-4

Andrew McCutchen: Popped out; struck out; grounded out; doubled. 1-for-4.

​Justin Morneau: Walked, homered, flew out, singled. 2-for-3. 

So here's how they stand with two games left to play.

---

Player	AB	Hits	Average
Justin Morneau, Colorado	501	160	.319
Josh Harrison, Pittsburgh	512	163	.318
Andrew McCutchen, Pittsburgh	542	170	.314

---

 

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Blue Jays can't sweep Mariners out of town, fall 7-5

With his team eliminated from post-season contention, Blue Jays manager John Gibbons turned to a rookie pitcher and a new-look lineup for Thursday's series finale against Seattle.

The results were mixed.

Daniel Norris turned in a decent performance in his first big-league start but the Mariners fought back for a 7-5 victory to avoid a four-game sweep and keep their slim playoff hopes alive.

Gibbons rested regulars like Jose Reyes, Dioner Navarro and Jose Bautista and inserted several late-season callups into the lineup. Dalton Pompey of Mississauga, Ont., was the leadoff man while the bottom half of the order featured Toronto native George Kottaras, Kevin Pillar, Anthony Gose and Ryan Goins.

Pompey had a decent game with a run, a hit and two walks while Norris gave up one hit and two earned runs over 3 1/3 innings.

"That's a big thing, a lot of guys don't get that chance to come up at the end of the season," Gibbons said. "When (players) go into a new season and they get called up for the first time, it can be a little intimidating.

"(Playing now) is going to help them all, regardless of the results."

Logan Morrison belted a three-run shot for Seattle (84-75) and added a solo homer as the Mariners ended a five-game losing skid. Seattle entered play three games behind the Kansas City Royals and Oakland Athletics in the race for the two American League wild-card spots.

"We're still in the ring, still fighting," said Seattle manager Lloyd McClendon.

Fernando Rodney gave up a solo homer to Kevin Pillar in the ninth inning before picking up his major league-leading 47th save.

Norris retired the first eight batters he faced. On a limit of about 60 pitches, he was pulled after giving up a one-out walk to Kendrys Morales in the fourth inning.

The 21-year-old left-hander, who made four relief appearances earlier this month, excelled in the minor leagues this year but has noticed a dip in his fastball speed since being called up.

"It's obvious my stuff is not really there," he said. "It's tough to try to pitch without your stuff but sometimes that's the competitor (in you) that has to come out.

"I think that's what I tried to do today, was go out there and compete without your big guns."

Todd Redmond relieved Norris and gave up an RBI single to Kyle Seager that cut Toronto's lead to 2-1. Morrison followed with a no-doubt blast to right-centre field that brought three more runs across.

Pompey showed some flashes of his potential throughout the game. He walked in the fifth inning, took second on an errant pickoff attempt, stole third and scored on an Edwin Encarnacion sacrifice fly.

Adam Lind drove in Munenori Kawasaki later in the frame to tie it before Seattle went ahead to stay in the sixth. Morrison took an Aaron Loup (4-4) pitch over the wall for his 11th homer of the year.

"I don't have any idea how I hit that guy. He's filthy," Morrison said. "I blacked out. I don't know what happened. Obviously playing every day has helped my timing. I know this is the type of player I can be."

Mike Zunino added an insurance run by going deep off Dustin McGowan for his 22nd homer of the year. Reliever Yoervis Medina (5-3) worked an inning of relief for the win.

Seattle used nine pitchers while Toronto used six. The Mariners had three errors but outhit the Blue Jays 10-5.

Notes: Announced attendance was 17,173 and the game took three hours two minutes to play. ... It was Morrison's second career multi-homer game. ... The Blue Jays will wrap up their regular season with a weekend series against the Baltimore Orioles. Drew Hutchison (10-13, 4.51 ERA) will start on Friday night against Baltimore's Chris Tillman (13-5, 3.26).

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Derek Jeter amazing one last time at Yankee Stadium

The perfect script.

Derek Jeter capped his Yankee Stadium farewell with a game-winning single in the bottom of the ninth inning, the latest — and perhaps last — storybook moment in his charmed and illustrious career, to give New York a 6-5 victory Thursday night over the Baltimore Orioles.

Serenaded with adoring chants that echoed through the Bronx night, Jeter tipped his cap several times at shortstop and drove in three runs. He launched an early double off the left-centre wall and saved the best for last, a sharp, opposite-field single to right that knocked in the winning run.

During the raucous celebration that followed, Jeter said he's played his final game at shortstop, but he'll likely play in some capacity this weekend in Boston.

It appeared Jeter's tiebreaking grounder in the seventh would be the swing that sent the Yankees to a victory when they built a 5-2 cushion against the AL East champions.

Not bad — but not Jeter.

Nope, he's always had a flair for the most electrifying kind of drama, and this night was destined to be no different.

As if it was planned all along, closer David Robertson (4-5) gave up a two-run homer in the top of the ninth to Adam Jones and a tying shot to Steve Pearce with two outs.

That only set the stage for Jeter one more time.

Jose Pirela hit a leadoff single in the bottom of the ninth against Evan Meek (0-4) and advanced on Brett Gardner's sacrifice. Jeter lined the next pitch through a huge hole on the right side, and pinch-runner Antoan Richardson slid home ahead of Nick Markakis' throw.

An elated Jeter jumped and raised both arms between first and second. Yankees players rushed out to engulf him as former teammates such as Jorge Posada, Mariano Rivera, Bernie Williams, Andy Pettitte, Tino Martinez and Hall of Fame manager Joe Torre lined up near the New York dugout waiting to greet the retiring captain.

"It was above and beyond anything that I've ever dreamt of," Jeter said.

Jeter went back out to shortstop, crouched down at the edge of the outfield grass and bounced on his toes a couple of times before rejoining the group.

He tipped his cap again and was doused over the head with a sports drink by Gardner and CC Sabathia.

In one twist that hardly fit, Jeter's home finale was the only game he ever played at Yankee Stadium with his team already knocked out of the playoff race.

When the Yankees were eliminated with Wednesday's loss, it put all the attention Thursday entirely on the captain's farewell — a feeling that must have been unsettling even for a 40-year-old mega-star as accustomed to the spotlight as Jeter.

"He's uncomfortable with what's going on. He wants the focus to be on the team," said Orioles skipper Buck Showalter, who was Jeter's first manager when the shortstop broke into the big leagues in May 1995.

"His signature is winning. What other accolade can you pick? His teams won," Showalter said. "Take a good look, because there are not going to be many like this come your way again."

Jeter ended last season on the disabled list, so the only other time in his 20-year career (2,745 regular-season games) that he appeared in a game with New York already out of post-season contention was in Boston on Sept. 26, 2008.

Last year, Rivera chose to sit out the final three games in Houston after an emotional Yankee Stadium goodbye.

Heavy rain soaked the city all afternoon, but the sky cleared in the evening and the tarp was removed from the infield an hour before the first pitch. A rainbow, in fact, appeared over the stadium.

The game began right on time, but it didn't start well for the Yankees.

Roll call by the Bleacher Creatures was interrupted just as they got to a roaring chant of "De-rek Je-ter!" Markakis hit a leadoff home run for the Orioles, awkwardly silencing the sellout crowd of 48,613 that included rap star Jay-Z and other famous faces.

Alejandro De Aza followed with another long ball to right, the first time Baltimore had started a game with consecutive homers since hitting three in a row against Texas on May 10, 2012.

Jeter, however, hit an RBI double in the first against rookie Kevin Gausman, who was 4 years old when Jeter made his major league debut. The ball banged off the left-centre wall — just missing a home run by a couple of feet. He scored on a grounder, and the fans were back into it.

TRAINER'S ROOM

Orioles: Pearce (right wrist) made his first start since Friday. ... Showalter said he'll use a lot of pitchers during the regular-season finale Sunday in Toronto, but his starter is still to be determined. Candidates include RHPs Ubaldo Jimenez and Miguel Gonzalez.

Yankees: Sabathia (right knee surgery) said he's been playing catch and feels good. He said he's sure he'll be ready to pitch in spring training next March.

UP NEXT

Orioles: RHP Chris Tillman (13-5) gets the ball Friday night in Toronto, a tuneup for his scheduled start in Game 1 of the playoffs next Thursday at Camden Yards.

Yankees: Jeter is a .265 career hitter with 14 homers in 142 games at Fenway Park.

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Mark Buehrle, small ball, allows Jays to blanks Mariners

Mark Buehrle figured his streak of 200-inning seasons was destined to end after he failed to reach the fifth inning three times in four starts in late July and early August.

"I kind of did the math and said, `You have eight starts and you need X amount of innings,"' Buehrle said. "I didn't like my chances."

Turns out those chances were better than the veteran left-hander could have guessed.

Buehrle pitched eight shutout innings to reach 200 innings for the 14th consecutive season, Ryan Goins drove in the only run of the game and Toronto pushed Seattle closer to playoff elimination, beating the slumping Mariners 1-0 Wednesday night.

"He was as good as you're ever going to see him," Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said of Buehrle.

Buehrle (13-10) allowed three hits, walked one and struck out 10, one shy of his season high. He left to his second standing ovation of the night after Chris Taylor's leadoff single in the ninth.

"That was vintage Buehrle," Mariners manager Lloyd McClendon said.

Buehrle didn't argue his hook, but had already mentioned to Gibbons he had plenty left in his tank.

"I told him (earlier), `Hey, if we go 12 tonight, I think I can throw all 12,"' Buehrle said. "I just felt that good."

Aaron Sanchez came on and picked off pinch runner James Jones, then got the final two outs for his third save in as many chances.

The Mariners lost their fifth straight and have dropped nine of 12. Seattle had inched closer in the wild card race when Oakland lost to the Angels Wednesday afternoon, but the defeat dropped them three games back with four to play.

Buehrle's 200-inning seasons

YEAR	TEAM	IP	W	ERA
2001	Chicago White Sox	221 1/3	16	3.29
2002	White Sox	239	19	3.58
2003	White Sox	230 1/3	14	4.14
2004	White Sox	245 1/3	16	3.89
2005	White Sox	236 2/3	16	3.12
2006	White Sox	204	12	4.99
2007	White Sox	201	10	3.63
2008	White Sox	218 2/3	15	3.79
2009	White Sox	213 1/3	13	3.84
2010	White Sox	210 1/3	13	4.28
2011	White Sox	205 1/3	13	3.59
2012	Miami	202 1/3	13	3.74
2013	TORONTO	203 2/3	12	4.15
2014	TORONTO	202	12	3.39

Buehrle had 194 innings on the season coming in, and reached 200 by striking out Dustin Ackley looking for the final out of the sixth. Country music played as Buehrle's achievement was noted on the scoreboard, and the crowd of 16,836 rose for a standing ovation. Buehrle accepted congratulations from his teammates before coming out of the dugout for a brief curtain call.

"He's a pretty special guy, on and off the field," Gibbons said of Buehrle before the game. "We could use a few more of him."

Hall of Famers Don Sutton and Gaylord Perry each had 14 consecutive seasons of 200 innings or more from 1966 to 1980, but both pitchers saw their streaks snapped by the 1981 player's strike.

Buehrle retired the first six batters in order before Corey Hart led off the third with a ground rule double that bounced on the right field foul line and into the seats. Gibbons came out to challenge but the call stood. Hart went to third on Taylor's one-out fly ball, but Austin Jackson was caught looking to end the inning.

Mariners rookie Taijuan Walker (2-3) pitched his first career complete game, ending Seattle's four-game streak of starting pitchers failing to complete five innings. He allowed four hits, walked one and struck out six.

"That young man threw a tremendous ball game," McClendon said. "His last two outings have really given us a glimpse of the future."

The Blue Jays didn't put a runner in scoring position through the first seven innings, and still hadn't when they broke the deadlock in the eighth. Kawasaki drew a one-out walk and scored from first when Goins dropped a bloop single in front of Jackson in centre, who was playing deep to prevent a double.

"It's very unfortunate," McClendon said. "It landed in a spot where nobody could get it, and it was on turf where it bounced high."

FAST PACED

At a brisk 1 hour, 59 minutes, this was the fastest game of the season for both teams, and the first big league game to finish in less than two hours since San Diego lost 1-0 at Houston on June 27, 2012.

TIMES CHANGE

The only season that Buehrle failed to reach 200 innings was 2000, his rookie year. Back then, a barrel of oil cost $30, Hilary Clinton was elected to the Senate, and Tiger Woods was the youngest Grand Slam winner in golf history.

UP NEXT

Mariners RHP Tom Wilhelmsen (3-2) will face Blue Jays LHP Daniel Norris (0-0) in Thursday's series finale. Norris will be making his first major league start, while Wilhelmsen is coming out of the bullpen to make his second start of the season. He replaces RHP Chris Young, who was dropped from Seattle's rotation after going 0-3 with a 8.35 ERA in his previous five starts.

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Justin Morneau turns to 3-time batting champ in heated NL race

Justin Morneau awoke recently following a 1-for-3, two-run performance and realized he needed to seek help.

While that effort, in particular, wasn't cause for concern, it kept the Colorado Rockies first baseman one percentage point behind Pittsburgh outfielder/infielder Josh Harrison with eight days remaining in the regular season as they battle for the National League batting title.

Morneau decided to call a friend, a good one in former Rockies outfielder and fellow Canadian, Larry Walker, who won the NL batting crown in 1998, 1999 and 2001.

Will Canada's Justin Morneau win the NL batting title?

He wanted to know how he should approach the game during the final week of the season with his team far removed from playoff contention. Walker told Morneau not to change, period.

"He wants to win this thing," said Walker of Morneau in a phone interview. "Your number one objective is to go out there and win because you want to celebrate with your teammates [and win a division] but that's out of the equation for him, so it's a different mindset for him when taking the field.

"I told him nothing's different. The game hasn't changed. You still go out there to try to win. You can't lose that frame of mind."

Walker, who had a on-base percentage of .400 in 17 major league seasons, also told Morneau to take some walks in games "because a 1-for-4 could turn into a 1-for-3 or 1-for-2, which is a big difference this time of year" when each at-bat is critical.

On Wednesday night, Morneau went 0-for-3 but managed to draw a walk to keep his .317 average from falling another percentage point. In Atlanta, Harrison's average dipped to .316 with a 1-for-5 showing while teammate Andrew McCutchen collected two hits to raise his average to .313.

Morneau is having to fight through a tough first season in Colorado as Wednesday's 4-3 loss at San Diego dropped the Rockies' record to 66-93 while Harrison and McCutchen are motivated by the fact Pittsburgh clinched its second consecutive playoff berth on Tuesday.

"It's a lot more fun to take the field knowing that the games are important and more meaningful," said Walker, who along with Tip O'Neill are the only Canadians to win a batting title. "You tend to [struggle with] the concentration part when you're just going through the motions and there's no reward at the end of the day."

Still, Walker believes Morneau, the 2006 American League MVP, has been in the game long enough to experience a lot of situations and keep mentally strong.

Morneau, who could win the ninth batting title by a Rockie, was one of the most feared hitters in the major leagues from 2006 to 2009 before concussions and other injuries derailed his 2010 and 2011 campaigns. He struggled last season with Minnesota and Pittsburgh before signing a two-year, $12.5-million deal, with a third-year option, in Colorado.

"He's a success story, he's bounced back," said Walker of Morneau, who has 16 home runs and 80 RBIs in 133 games this season. "I think what he's gone through these last few years … it's been a pretty good year. I'm glad I told him to go to Colorado."

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Jays' playoff drought: Top priority for turnaround?

Jason Frasor, who pitched nine non-playoff seasons for the Toronto Blue Jays from 2004 to 2012, delivered the knockout punch to the club's post-season hopes for this season.

Now a reliever for playoff-contending Kansas City, the right-hander got Cleveland's Jason Giambi to fly out in the bottom of the ninth inning Tuesday night to secure a 7-1 victory for the Royals, whose magic number to eliminate the Blue Jays from playoff contention was one.

In Toronto, the Blue Jays did Kansas City a huge favour by beating Seattle for a second straight night, 10-2, allowing the Royals to extend their lead over the Mariners to three games for the second wild-card spot in the American League.

Team	Seasons	Last appearance
Kansas City	28	1985
TORONTO	21	1993
Seattle	12	2001
Miami	11	2003
Houston	9	2005
San Diego	8	2006
NY Mets	8	2006

Should Kansas City hold on and make the playoffs for the first time since 1985, the Blue Jays would take ownership of the longest current post-season drought in baseball at 21 years. The Jays haven't been to the playoffs since they won the 1993 World Series. Since then, they have played more than 3,300 games.

On June 7, Toronto was first in the AL East Division, 14 games above .500 at 38-24 and, according to Baseball Prospectus had an 86 per cent chance of clinching a playoff berth.

By early July, the Jays were 47-43 and managed to go seven games above .500 in the first week of August (61-54). But a month later, they were back to hovering around the .500 mark.

So, where does the team go from here?

Will left-fielder Melky Cabrera be re-signed before hitting free agency? Has the time come for Anthony Gose to supplant Colby Rasmus in centre-field? Where does injury prone third baseman Brett Lawrie fit in? At third? Second base? Do young pitchers Marcus Stroman, Aaron Sanchez and Daniel Norris all start the 2015 season in the starting rotation?

It's time for you to make like Blue Jays general manager Alex Anthopoulos and decide what needs to be addressed first and foremost during the off-season to not have a repeat of June and August 2014 next summer.

Vote in the poll below and share your thoughts.

What should be the top off-season priority of Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos?

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Blue Jays refuse to go quietly, pound Mariners again

The worst inning Felix Hernandez has ever endured put another dent in Seattle's sinking playoff hopes.

Dalton Pompey hit his first major league homer off Hernandez, and the Toronto Blue Jays roughed up the 2010 AL Cy Young Award winner for a career worst-tying eight earned runs in a 10-2 victory over the Mariners on Tuesday night.

"As an ace, I take responsibility," Hernandez said. "I let my team down. That's my fault."

The slumping Mariners fell three games out of the second AL wild-card spot with five games remaining.

"It's definitely frustrating," outfielder Austin Jackson said. "We know the situation that we're in."

Seattle lost its fourth straight thanks to another poor effort by a starting pitcher. Mariners starters have failed to complete five innings in any of the past four games, allowing 27 earned runs over 14 2/3 innings in that span for an ugly ERA of 16.56.

"We're not playing well right now," Seattle manager Lloyd McClendon said. "A lot of things are going wrong, but we're still alive."

Despite the win, Toronto was eliminated from playoff contention when Kansas City beat Cleveland.

"We're all disappointed," Blue Jays starter R.A. Dickey said. "We should be."

Edwin Encarnacion had a two-run shot and Dickey (14-12) allowed two runs over seven innings to win for the fourth time in five starts.

Hernandez (14-6) came in with a 2.07 ERA this season and had allowed just three earned runs in 28 innings over four September starts. He gave up a run in the first on Encarnacion's RBI single, but retired the next 11 batters, striking out five.

That streak ended in the fifth, when Pompey led off with a second-deck homer.

"I've played with that guy in video games," Pompey said, referring to Hernandez. "To think that I just hit a home run off him is pretty crazy."

Anthony Gose followed with a double and Josh Thole reached on a bunt single when Hernandez couldn't pick up the ball.

"After that it was downhill," Hernandez said.

It sure was. Ryan Goins made it 3-2 Toronto with a sacrifice fly. Jose Reyes singled, Jose Bautista walked and Encarnacion drew a bases-loaded walk before Adam Lind hit an RBI single. Munenori Kawasaki drove in a run with a fielder's choice, and Pompey walked before Dominic Leone replaced Hernandez.

"He just seemed to lose his command in the fifth inning for some reason," McClendon said.

Leone did Hernandez no favours, hitting Gose with a pitch to force in another run and giving up an RBI single to Thole before Goins flied out, ending the seven-run, 13-batter inning. The seven runs were the most ever allowed by Hernandez in a single inning.

Hernandez gave up seven hits, walked three and boosted his career-high strikeout total to 241.

NORRIS GETS NOD

Blue Jays LHP Daniel Norris has been tabbed to start Thursday's series finale in place of suspended Marcus Stroman. Gibbons said Norris, who will be making his first big league start, will be limited to two or three innings. Stroman will work out of the bullpen once he returns Friday.

BULLPEN EFFORT

McClendon said he'll use multiple relievers to get through Thursday's game, but declined to say which pitcher will start. McClendon removed struggling right-hander Chris Young from the rotation Monday, creating a vacancy.

CANADIAN CRUSHER

Pompey became the ninth Canadian player to hit a home run for the Blue Jays, joining Rob Ducey, Paul Hodgson, Corey Koskie, Brett Lawrie, Adam Loewen, Dave McKay, Simon Pond and Matt Stairs.

TRAINER'S ROOM

Blue Jays: Lind returned to first base after missing the previous three games with a sore back.

UP NEXT Mariners RHP Taijuan Walker (1-2) faces Blue Jays LHP Mark Buehrle (12-10) on Wednesday. Buehrle is six innings shy of reaching 200 for the 14th consecutive season.

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Blue Jays rout Mariners, keep playoff hopes alive

The Toronto Blue Jays had James Paxton scouted — literally.

Paxton, from Ladner, B.C., gave up nine runs (eight earned) as Toronto crushed the visiting Seattle Mariners 14-4 on Monday night.

The Blue Jays drafted Paxton in the supplemental first round of the 2009 draft with the 39th overall pick. Toronto and Paxton could not strike a deal and he was picked in the fourth round in the 2010 draft by the Mariners.

Game notes

Pitcher Chris Young will not start for the Mariners in the finale of the four-game series on Thursday after going 0-3 with an 8.25 earned-run average in his past five starts. Manager Lloyd McClendon said he is showing fatigue after coming back this season from surgery … Blue Jays designated hitter Adam Lind (sore back) was out of the Blue Jays starting lineup for the third consecutive game but should return on Tuesday … Jays pitcher R.A. Dickey (13-12, 3.82 ERA) will start for Toronto on Tuesday against Seattle's Felix Hernandez (14-5, 2.07 ERA). … Announced attendance at Rogers Centre was 15,548.

— The Canadian Press

"I just didn't have a good feel for it tonight," said Paxton, who was playing against the Blue Jays for the first time. "I felt like I was all over the place. When I was in the strike zone, it was the heart of the plate and they were hitting the ball hard. I think I probably just wanted it a bit too much.

"My stuff didn't feel great tonight. I didn't have a good feel for anything."

Mariners manager Lloyd McClendon agreed, pointing to the young pitcher's nerves.

"I think he was probably a little bit too amped up," said McClendon.

Danny Valencia drove in three runs with a triple and Jose Bautista, Kevin Pillar and Anthony Gose homered as the Blue Jays nearly equalled their total of 18 runs from the 1-6 road trip that ended Sunday.

"You try to do that every night but it's not that easy," Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said. "I thought we had a real good approach at the plate and made Paxton work. We got some big hits. We haven't had a laugher in a good while. I can't remember the last time."

Paxton (6-4) did not survive the third inning, allowing seven hits and six walks in 2 2/3 innings.

Left-hander J.A. Happ (10-11) became the fifth Blue Jays starter to reach double numbers in wins this season, allowing seven hits, including a home run by Kyle Seager, and two runs over seven innings.

"It feels good to go out and get deeper in the game, accomplish some of the goals that I kind of felt I could do and wanted to have the opportunity to do," said Happ. "I haven't taken a lot of time to reflect on the year but I just want to just keep going out and kind of keep us in the game for the most part.

"Play like we play tonight and we're going to have a lot of fun."

AL Wild Card Race

Team	Games	#WCE
Oakland (86-70)	+1.0	-----
Kansas City (85-71)	------	-----
Seattle (83-73)	2.0	5
Cleveland (82-75)	3.5	3
NY Yankees (81-75)	4.0	3
Toronto (79-77)	6.0	1
#Wild Card Elimination Number

It is the first time the Blue Jays (79-77) have had five starters win at least 10 games in one season. It is the third time they have had five pitchers with at least 10 wins when relievers are included.

The Blue Jays led 4-1 after the first inning and 9-1 after three innings to hand Seattle (83-73) its third loss in a row.

The Mariners scored a run in the first when Robinson Cano doubled home Austin Jackson led off with an infield single.

Toronto replied with four runs in their first inning on a bases-loaded triple by Valencia and a single by Steve Tolleson.

Valencia's triple was not without some controversy. He was awarded third base when a video review determined he was safe after the Blue Jays challenged the out call.

Toronto chased Paxton in the five-run third to increase their lead to 9-1. The inning included Bautista's 35th home run of the season. That moved him past George Bell and tied Joe Carter for third on the Blue Jays' all-time list with 203 homers.

Seager hit his 25th homer of the season in the sixth to cut the lead to 11-2.

Pillar hit his first homer of the season, a two-run shot, in the sixth.

Gose, who entered the game among the seventh-inning defensive changes, hit his second homer of the season in the seventh to make it 14-2 for Toronto.

Rookie Kendall Graveman allowed a run in the eighth to make it 14-3.

Toronto reliever Sean Nolin allowed a homer to Chris Denorfia in the ninth for the final score.

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Will Jose Bautista win a 3rd home run title?

There's plenty to cheer about this week at Rogers Centre, even though the Toronto Blue Jays could be officially eliminated from playoff contention as early as Tuesday evening.

Fans could root for left-handed starter Mark Buehrle in his quest for a 14th consecutive 200-inning major league season (currently at 194), Edwin Encarnacion's pursuit for a third straight 100-RBI campaign (93) or Dioner Navarro, who needs two home runs for a career-high 14.

Then there's right-fielder Jose Bautista, who many consider to be wrapping up his most complete season as a major leaguer.

Will Jose Bautista win the major league home run title?

Bautista raised his batting average to .288 with a three-hit night in Monday's 14-4 drubbing of the visiting Seattle Mariners.

Among Bautista's three hits was his 35th homer of the season while his two runs batted in gives him 103 RBIs to match his total from 2011.

Baltimore's Nelson Cruz, who hasn't gone deep since Sept. 8, leads the majors with 39 home runs, followed by Houston's Chris Carter and injured Miami Marlins outfielder Giancarlo Stanton, each with 37.

Bautista, Boston's David Ortiz, Mike Trout of the Los Angeles Angels and Chicago White Sox rookie Jose Abreu have 35 long balls.

Bautista has now homered three times in his past five games and 10 times in the past 26 days.

It wouldn't be a shock if the 34-year-old added another five in the Jays' final six games to reach 40. It might be more surprising if Cruz, Carter, et al kept the baseball in the park for the remainder of the week.

So we ask you, will Bautista have a final week of the season to remember and win his third major league home run title in the past five years? He led baseball with 54 in 2010 and 43 in 2011.

Vote in the poll above and comment below.

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Brian McCann, Yankees too much for Blue Jays

When the Toronto Blue Jays headed home on Sunday evening after yet another loss at Yankee Stadium, they were 6 1/2 games out for the AL's second wild card with seven games to play.

"It's not looking too great," Jose Bautista said after the 5-2 defeat. "The stars are going to have to align for us if anything's going to happen."

Toronto has not played a postseason game since Joe Carter's World Series-winning home run off Mitch Williams 21 years ago, and that streak of futility is not likely to end this year. A 1-6 trip to Baltimore and New York pretty much ended the Blue Jays' already feint postseason hopes.

"Obviously, it's real disappointing," Drew Hutchison (10-13) said after his second loss on the trip.

Masahiro Tanaka made a triumphant return from an elbow injury that sidelined him for 2 1/2 months, and a rejuvenated Derek Jeter got yet another big hit on his final homestand. Toronto dropped to 3-20 at Yankee Stadium since September 2012.

"It's never an easy place to play," Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said.

Tanaka started sensationally at 11-1 with a 1.99 ERA in his first 14 appearances. But he slumped in his next four and hadn't pitched since July 8 after scans discovered a slight tear in the ulnar collateral ligament of his right elbow. Rather than opt for Tommy John surgery, which would have sidelined him for about a year, Tanaka and the Yankees chose a rehabilitation strengthening protocol.

Tanaka (13-4) responded by allowing one run and five hits in 5 1-3 innings with four strikeouts, no walks and a hit batter.

"He looked like he was the same guy that we faced earlier," Bautista said. "His velocity might have been down one or two miles, but that's not a lot. The movement was the same."

With fans in the crowd of 48,144 giving him standing ovations during every at-bat on the gray, overcast afternoon, Jeter went 2 for 4 and finished his next-to-last home series 8 for 15 with two doubles, a home run and three RBIs. Jeter saluted the crowd after sharing postgame handshakes and high-fives with his teammates.

Team	Games
Oakland (85-70)	+0.5
Kansas City (84-70)	------
Seattle (83-72)	1.5
Cleveland (81-74)	3.5
N.Y. Yankees (80-75)	4.5
Toronto (78-77)	6.5

Bautista made it a point to speak with Jeter at second base during the game.

"He's one of the most complete all-around players that you can have or that you can think about," Bautista said. "This is an example for all of us to follow."

Tanaka allowed a run in first when Jose Reyes singled to right center, went to third on Bautista's ground single to right through the shifted infield and came home on Edwin Encarnacion's double-play grounder. After Munenori Kawasaki had a one-double in the second, he retired 11 of his next 12 batters. Tanaka went to a three-ball count just once.

Hutchison gave up solo homers to Brian McCann in the first and Brett Gardner in the fifth — the 15,000th in Yankees history since the franchise started playing in New York in 1903. Jeter's single finished Hutchison after four-plus innings.

"Poor execution and poor command of my fastball," said Hutchison, who lost his fourth straight road decision.

Jeter's RBI double off Todd Redmond in the seventh made it 3-1, and McCann followed with a two-run homer against Daniel Norris.

As disappointed Toronto players walked off after the final out, Jeter saluted his adoring fans.

"I don't think anything he does surprises anybody," Gibbons said. "The game's going to miss him."

Cut short

Toronto starting pitchers had gone six innings or more in a team-record 26 consecutive games, seven more than the previous mark in 1998 and the longest in the major leagues since the 2003 Mariners strung together 27.

Speed demon

Jose Reyes had three hits and swiped two bases, reaching 30 in a season for the eighth time.

Trainer's room

Blue Jays: 1B Adam Lind missed his second straight game because of back pain.

Up next

LHP J.A. Happ (9-11) starts Toronto's homestand opener against Seattle's James Paxton (6-3).

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Blue Jays' Marcus Stroman drops appeal of suspension

Toronto rookie pitcher eligible to start Friday versus Baltimore Orioles

The Canadian Press Posted: Sep 21, 2014 2:32 PM ET Last Updated: Sep 21, 2014 2:32 PM ET

Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Marcus Stroman dropped his appeal of a six-game suspension from Major League Baseball and the penalty was cut to five games.

MLB penalized Stroman on Wednesday and fined the 23-year-old rookie right-hander for throwing a pitch two days earlier that sailed past the head of Baltimore Orioles catcher Caleb Joseph:

---

---

Stroman's pitch came a half-inning after Joseph had stepped on Toronto baserunner Jose Reyes' hand as he slid home.

Stroman (11-6) started Saturday and earned the win as Toronto doubled up the New York Yankees, 6-3.

He will be eligible to pitch in Friday's series opener against the Orioles.

Comments on this story are moderated according to our Submission Guidelines. Comments are welcome while open. We reserve the right to close comments at any time.

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Note: The CBC does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comments, you acknowledge that CBC has the right to reproduce, broadcast and publicize those comments or any part thereof in any manner whatsoever. Please note that comments are moderated and published according to our submission guidelines.

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Blue Jays fall to Yankees for 2nd straight night

From the get-go, Jacoby Ellsbury and Derek Jeter showed Mark Buehrle that it would be another no-go against the New York Yankees.

Ellsbury lined a leadoff double to the wall, Jeter followed with a hard single and the Yankees beat Buehrle for the 12th straight time over a decade-plus, sending Toronto to its season-worst sixth straight loss, 5-3 Friday night.

The Yankees won their third in a row to preserve their faint playoff hopes. They began the day five games behind Oakland for the second AL wild-card spot, with Seattle and Cleveland also in the way.

"End strong, see what happens," Adam Warren said after earning a save.

Ellsbury homered, doubled and drove in three runs, but made an early exit. He hustled to beat a double-play relay as the Yankees took a 5-2 lead in the fourth inning, and left before the fifth with a strained right hamstring.

Manager Joe Girardi said he doubted Ellsbury would play Saturday against the Blue Jays and said it was a "distinct possibility" that he was done for the season.

The cheers for Jeter kept getting louder and louder during his final homestand, and fans chanted his name throughout the ninth inning.

Jeter delivered two singles, including one where he carried the shattered-off bat handle all the way to first base, and posted back-to-back multi-hit games for the first time since late July. The retiring captain later hit a long fly that really got the crowd hollering before it was caught on the warning track.

The 40-year-old shortstop also alertly tricked speedy Jose Reyes off second by bluffing a throw to first, trapping him in a rundown.

Buehrle (12-10) is winless in 17 starts against the Yankees since April 2004. His losing streak against New York is the longest by any pitcher against a single opponent since Bobby Witt dropped 12 in a row to Cleveland from 1991-99, STATS said.

Buehrle, who has 198 career victories, fell to 1-14 lifetime against the Yankees.

"That is the way it goes, it is almost getting to the point where you want to laugh it off," he said.

Hiroki Kuroda (11-9) gave up Edwin Encarnacion's two-run homer off the left-field foul pole in the first, and little else.

Reliever Esmil Rogers, who was waived twice this season by Toronto, retired Encarnacion on a bases-loaded grounder to end the seventh. Warren pitched 1 2/3 innings for his third save while closer David Robertson and setup man Dellin Betances got the night off.

Reyes doubled twice and singled. The shortstop threw wide on Ellsbury's RBI forceout, and the error allowed another run to score.

NICE JOB, KID

Canadian rookie Dalton Pompey got his first major league hit for Toronto in the second. Jeter got the ball back from the outfield and tossed it into the dugout, then gave the 21-year-old newcomer a slap on the back when the inning ended.

"He said, 'Congrats, I hope for a great career for you,"' Pompey said. "And I said, 'Thanks, it is a pleasure to meet you.' And he said, 'Likewise, keep swinging it.' So it was good words from him."

"I just talked to Derek Jeter," Pompey said. "Surreal, right?"

STUCK

Brett Gardner went hitless in four at-bats, striking out twice. Dropped to sixth in the Yankees' lineup, he's in a career-worst 0-for-27 slump.

TRAINER'S ROOM

Blue Jays: Encarnacion had an MRI on his back before the game. Manager John Gibbons said it flared up this week in Baltimore.

Yankees: DH Carlos Beltran played for the first time since announcing his wife had a miscarriage of the couple's son. Beltran left the team Monday and returned on Thursday. Girardi said "Sometimes, for athletes, for anyone, it's good to get back out there, to doing what you're used to doing and living that normal life. But obviously he's got a heavy heart, and we've got a heavy heart with him." Beltran went 0 for 4.

UP NEXT

Blue Jays: Rookie RHP Marcus Stroman (10-6, 3.80) starts on Saturday. He is currently appealing a six-game suspension imposed this week by Major League Baseball for throwing at the head of a Baltimore hitter in his last start. Gibbons said the team wants to get the matter resolved before the end of the season so there is no carry-over next year.

Yankees: LHP Chris Capuano (2-3, 4.55) is set to pitch against the Blue Jays for the sixth time this year. He faced them three times in relief with Boston, and has started twice against them for New York.

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Jays beat Yankees, end 6-game losing skid

Derek Jeter's farewell tour. Family and friends in the stands. On the fringes of a playoff race.

Marcus Stroman was making dream start, and it sure had a happy ending.

Stroman pitched six gritty innings, Jose Bautista hit his eighth homer of the year against New York and the Toronto Blue Jays ended a season-worst six-game skid to beat the Yankees 6-3 Saturday and keep their faint playoff hopes alive.

"It was an awesome environment," said the rookie right-hander who is from nearby Medford. "It was special, being from here, watching Jeter growing up. I definitely rank it pretty high."

With eight games to play for both teams, Toronto is 5 1/2 games back for an AL wild card and the Yankees are 4 1/2. Seattle and Cleveland all played later Saturday night.

Danny Valencia hit a go-ahead, two-run double in the sixth, helping hand the Yankees their first loss of Jeter's final homestand after two wins over Toronto. New York had won three in a row overall.

With most of the 47,292 fans at Yankee Stadium standing and chanting "Der-ek Je-ter!" his every at-bat, the retiring captain doubled and singled for his third straight multihit game. He also scored his 1,920th run to pass suspended teammate Alex Rodriguez for ninth place on the career list.

Jeter hit an RBI double down the left-field line off Brandon Morrow in the ninth to cut the lead to 6-3 as cameras flashed throughout the packed ballpark. Casey Janssen relieved and hit Brian McCann with a pitch before getting two outs for his 24th save.

"The guy never stops fighting and believing in himself," manager Joe Girardi said of Jeter. "It's an attitude that's infectuous and it's an attitude that you want in your players."

Awaiting word on his appeal of a six-game suspension for throwing over the head of Orioles catcher Caleb Joseph on Monday, Stroman (11-6) gave up two runs and eight hits. He struck out seven without allowing a walk.

Team	Games
Oakland (84-70)	+0.5
Kansas City (83-70)	------
Seattle (83-71)	0.5
Cleveland (80-74)	3.5
N.Y. Yankees (79-75)	4.5
Toronto (78-76)	5.5

Bautista scored four times and reached base all five plate appearances, walking three times to pass 100 for the third time in his career.

The All-Star right-fielder connected leading off the seventh against Chase Whitley, giving him 34 homers and 101 RBIs this year. His eight homers against New York are tied for most against one team this season, according to STATS. The Cubs' Anthony Rizzo has eight against Cincinnati.

"I think it's a good performance that obviously helps in meaningful games in September," Bautista said, reflecting on his day. "It's going to be tough, but mathematically we're still in it."

Edwin Encarnacion had an RBI double in the first off Chris Capuano (2-4) but the Yankees took a lead with runs in the third and fourth.

Jeter singled off the glove of diving second baseman Steve Tolleson and scored on McCann's single after advancing on a wild pitch in the third.

Fake out

Yankees fans booed Bautista as he left the field at the end of the seventh inning after he caught the last out in right field, turned and faked tossing the ball into the bleachers. Bautista had a ball in his back pocket upon his return for the bottom of the eighth and flipped it into the crowd. A fan feigned giving it to a woman in a Blue Jays jersey and threw it right back onto the field. "At first I thought it was some innocent back and forth," he said. "But after the ball was thrown I decided not to continue to have the interaction because, what was going to happen next?"

Trainer's room

Blue Jays: 1B Adam Lind was out of the lineup because his "back locked up a little bit (Friday)," according to manager John Gibbons. Gibbons hopes the injury does not sideline Lind too long.

Yankees: 1B Mark Teixeira was pinch hit for in the fifth inning. He left with a sore right wrist and will consult with the surgeon who operated on the wrist last year. ... CF Jacoby Ellsbury was out of the lineup a day after straining his right hamstring.

Up next

Blue Jays: RHP Drew Hutchinson (10-12) takes the mound in the finale of the season series between the teams.

Yankees: Masahiro Tanaka (12-4) is scheduled to make his first start since July 8. He's has been out with a partial tear of an elbow ligament and is trying to avoid Tommy John surgery.

Leaning left

The Blue Jays started a lineup against Capuano with two switch-hitters, Dioner Navarro and Dalton Pompey, and seven righties. That left Toronto with a bench of eight left-handed bats.

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Blue Jays fall to Yankees for 2nd straight night

From the get-go, Jacoby Ellsbury and Derek Jeter showed Mark Buehrle that it would be another no-go against the New York Yankees.

Ellsbury lined a leadoff double to the wall, Jeter followed with a hard single and the Yankees beat Buehrle for the 12th straight time over a decade-plus, sending Toronto to its season-worst sixth straight loss, 5-3 Friday night.

The Yankees won their third in a row to preserve their faint playoff hopes. They began the day five games behind Oakland for the second AL wild-card spot, with Seattle and Cleveland also in the way.

"End strong, see what happens," Adam Warren said after earning a save.

Ellsbury homered, doubled and drove in three runs, but made an early exit. He hustled to beat a double-play relay as the Yankees took a 5-2 lead in the fourth inning, and left before the fifth with a strained right hamstring.

Manager Joe Girardi said he doubted Ellsbury would play Saturday against the Blue Jays and said it was a "distinct possibility" that he was done for the season.

The cheers for Jeter kept getting louder and louder during his final homestand, and fans chanted his name throughout the ninth inning.

Jeter delivered two singles, including one where he carried the shattered-off bat handle all the way to first base, and posted back-to-back multi-hit games for the first time since late July. The retiring captain later hit a long fly that really got the crowd hollering before it was caught on the warning track.

The 40-year-old shortstop also alertly tricked speedy Jose Reyes off second by bluffing a throw to first, trapping him in a rundown.

Buehrle (12-10) is winless in 17 starts against the Yankees since April 2004. His losing streak against New York is the longest by any pitcher against a single opponent since Bobby Witt dropped 12 in a row to Cleveland from 1991-99, STATS said.

Buehrle, who has 198 career victories, fell to 1-14 lifetime against the Yankees.

"That is the way it goes, it is almost getting to the point where you want to laugh it off," he said.

Hiroki Kuroda (11-9) gave up Edwin Encarnacion's two-run homer off the left-field foul pole in the first, and little else.

Reliever Esmil Rogers, who was waived twice this season by Toronto, retired Encarnacion on a bases-loaded grounder to end the seventh. Warren pitched 1 2/3 innings for his third save while closer David Robertson and setup man Dellin Betances got the night off.

Reyes doubled twice and singled. The shortstop threw wide on Ellsbury's RBI forceout, and the error allowed another run to score.

NICE JOB, KID

Canadian rookie Dalton Pompey got his first major league hit for Toronto in the second. Jeter got the ball back from the outfield and tossed it into the dugout, then gave the 21-year-old newcomer a slap on the back when the inning ended.

"He said, 'Congrats, I hope for a great career for you,"' Pompey said. "And I said, 'Thanks, it is a pleasure to meet you.' And he said, 'Likewise, keep swinging it.' So it was good words from him."

"I just talked to Derek Jeter," Pompey said. "Surreal, right?"

STUCK

Brett Gardner went hitless in four at-bats, striking out twice. Dropped to sixth in the Yankees' lineup, he's in a career-worst 0-for-27 slump.

TRAINER'S ROOM

Blue Jays: Encarnacion had an MRI on his back before the game. Manager John Gibbons said it flared up this week in Baltimore.

Yankees: DH Carlos Beltran played for the first time since announcing his wife had a miscarriage of the couple's son. Beltran left the team Monday and returned on Thursday. Girardi said "Sometimes, for athletes, for anyone, it's good to get back out there, to doing what you're used to doing and living that normal life. But obviously he's got a heavy heart, and we've got a heavy heart with him." Beltran went 0 for 4.

UP NEXT

Blue Jays: Rookie RHP Marcus Stroman (10-6, 3.80) starts on Saturday. He is currently appealing a six-game suspension imposed this week by Major League Baseball for throwing at the head of a Baltimore hitter in his last start. Gibbons said the team wants to get the matter resolved before the end of the season so there is no carry-over next year.

Yankees: LHP Chris Capuano (2-3, 4.55) is set to pitch against the Blue Jays for the sixth time this year. He faced them three times in relief with Boston, and has started twice against them for New York.

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Marcus Stroman, Blue Jays aim to stop bleeding

Having to overtake at least three teams over their final 10 games in order to earn a playoff spot, it's looking more and more likely that the New York Yankees are going to miss the post-season in consecutive years for the first time in over two decades.

Accomplishing that unlikely task could be much more difficult without Jacoby Ellsbury.

The Yankees seek a fourth straight victory Saturday as they face starter Marcus Stroman and the reeling Toronto Blue Jays in the Bronx.

New York (79-74) is tied with Cleveland and trails Seattle, Oakland and Kansas City in the wild-card standings and would need plenty of help to return to the playoffs after not qualifying last season.

The Yankees haven't missed the post-season in back-to-back years since going from 1982-1993 without an appearance. They aren't giving up the fight yet, though, as Ellsbury homered, doubled and drove in three runs while Derek Jeter had two hits in Friday's 5-3 victory over Toronto.

''End strong, see what happens,'' said Yankees reliever Adam Warren, who picked up his sixth save.

Ellsbury beat out a double play in the fourth inning but strained his right hamstring in the process. He stayed in for the rest of the inning but left in the top of the fifth.

Yankees manager Joe Girardi said there's a "distinct possibility" Ellsbury, who signed a seven-year, $153-million US contract in the off-season, could be done for the season.

New York hopes to overcome Ellsbury's absence as it faces Stroman (10-6, 3.80 ERA), who will get the start while appealing the six-game suspension he received for throwing a pitch over the head of Baltimore Orioles catcher Caleb Joseph in this past Monday's 5-2 loss.

The ban stems from the potential that Stroman was retaliating for teammate Jose Reyes, who contended that Joseph tried to step on his hand while sliding into home plate earlier in the game.

Stroman maintains he wasn't trying to cause any problems.

''Fastball that just kind of slipped out of my hand,'' he said. ''It's late in the game, I got two big strikeouts, I'm a little excited and trying to get out of the inning.

"I know it's possibly my last hitter. Just trying to execute a fastball in.''

Stroman allowed five runs in six innings in that contest after winning his previous three starts with a 1.59 earned-run average. It's been an inconsistent six weeks for Stroman, who has allowed at least five runs four times while giving up two or fewer in the other four in that span.

The rookie is 1-1 with a 2.31 ERA in two starts against the Yankees, most recently allowing one run and three hits in eight innings of an 8-3 victory June 23.

Toronto (77-76) likely will need a solid performance out of Stroman as it looks to end a six-game losing streak that is its longest of the season. It has been outscored 33-15 in that stretch.

Edwin Encarnacion hit a two-run home run in the first inning and Reyes had three hits on Friday.

The Blue Jays will look to bounce back against Chris Capuano, who has pitched well against them since joining the Yankees.

Capuano (2-3, 4.55) is 1-2 with a 4.56 ERA in 10 starts since being acquired July 24. He's coming off his best outing after allowing two hits over six scoreless innings of New York's 1-0 loss to Tampa Bay on Monday.

The left-hander has a 2.92 ERA in two starts against Toronto while with the Yankees, not picking up a decision in his first start July 26 and allowing three runs in 6 1-3 innings of a 6-3 win Aug. 29.

New York has won 19 of 21 at home against Toronto.

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Blue Jays rotation likely to look familiar in 2015

The Toronto Blue Jays slim playoff hopes continued to fade following a sweep at the hands of the A.L. East champion Baltimore Orioles this week.

With 11 games left to play, the Blue Jays sit six games out of the second wild card spot, so it's probably worth looking towards next season.

The club has several issues, including filling the second-base hole with a player who can provide consistent offence, deciding on a direction in centre field, and finding a replacement for Melky Cabrera if they fail to resign the slugger.

One of the other question marks remains on the mound, particularly the starting rotation.

Barring any major off-season signings, four of the five starters are likely decided, with one tough choice to make to fill out the rotation.

R.A. Dickey

Many Blue Jays fans have a love-hate relationship with R.A. Dickey. But with one guaranteed year left on his contract at $12-million, don't be surprised if Dickey is the Opening Day starter for a third straight year. The former Cy Young Award winner has actually posted some decent numbers in 2014, going 13-12 with a 3.84 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP. The righty has also been able to limit the number of home runs he allowed compared to his debut season with the Jays.

Marcus Stroman

​What a breakout season for the 23-year-old. Through his 19 starts this season, the righty has gone 9-6 with an impressive 3.80 ER and 1.19 WHIP for a rookie. Stroman commands five pitches, with a fastball in the mid-ninties, and an enticing slider. If he can improve upon his 54.7% groundball percentage, he could be very valuable between a pair of veterans in the rotation.

Mark Buehrle

The 36-year-old will be entering the final year of his contract, and will make $19-million in 2015. The lefty helped stabilize the rotation this season, jumping out to a fantastic 10-1 start on the year. Since then, Buehrle's record has slipped hard, going 2-8 with just a pair of starts left this season. 

Drew Hutchison

​Another promising young arm, Hutchison has successfully rebounded from Tommy John surgery that kept him out of the entire 2013 season. Inconsistancy has been the issue with the 24-year-old this season, resulting in a 4.51 ERA and a 1.25 WHIP to go along with a 10-12 record. Those numbers are additionally telling when you consider Hutchison has an incredible 170 strikeouts in 175.2 innings pitched over 30 starts. 

2013 starting pitcher free-agent signings:

Scott Kazmir (OAK)
$22M / 2-years

Bartolo Colon (NYM)
$20M / 2-years

Phil Hughes (MIN)
$24M / 3-years

Dan Haren (LAD)
$10M / 1-year

Jason Hammel (CHC)
$6M / 1-year
 

5th starter

All signs right now point to J.A. Happ being the final arm in the rotation. Happ is under contract for next season, slated to make $5.2-million with a team option in 2016. He's consistently brought down the amount of hits and walks he allows per inning.

Blue Jays general manager Alex Anthopoulos must decide what to do with Brandon Morrow. The often-injured right-hander has missed the majority of this season, and will only be brought back if Anthopoulos decides to take a risk and pick-up Morrow's team option at $10-million. With Morrow only having pitched more that 150 innings in a season once in his eight-year career, it seems unlikely the 30-year-old will be back. 

Dustin McGowan could also make a bid for the final rotation spot. The Jays promoted McGowan to a starting role to begin the 2014 season, but through his first five starts the 32-year-old proved ineffective with a 5.87 ERA over 23 innings. 

Toronto has a wealth of young pitching prospects looking to crack the big club's rotation in spring training, including Daniel Norris and Kendall Graveman. But it would appear Aaron Sanchez has the best opportunity to make the leap. Over 28.2 innings so far, the righty is 2-1 with a pair of saves, has struck out 25 batters, and has a glistening 0.63 WHIP. Standing at 6-foot-4, Sanchez has an arsenal of pitches highlighted by a fastball that nears 100 mph (161 kph). 

Who should the Blue Jays' 5th starter be next season?

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Yankees eke out win over Blue Jays on Adam Lind error

On the morning of June 7, the Toronto Blue Jays were 38-24 and led the American League East by six games. Since then they've sputtered to a 39-51 record and have little chance to end their two-decade-plus post-season drought.

The faded Blue Jays tied their longest losing streak of the season at five games Thursday night, losing to the New York Yankees 3-2 when first baseman Adam Lind allowed Chase Headley's two-hop grounder in the ninth inning to bounce under his glove and through his legs for a game-ending error.

"It happened so fast. Basically, I didn't make the play," Lind said. "I thought I was focused on the ball. He hit it pretty hard, almost right at me."

New York (78-74) moved ahead of Toronto (77-75) for sole possession of second place in the AL East, and the Blue Jays are six games back in the wild card race with 10 games left. Toronto hasn't made the playoffs since winning consecutive World Series titles in 1992 and '93. The hope of spring has long since evaporated.

"It's disappointing for everybody. There's no way around that," said R.A. Dickey, who stretched his scoreless streak against the Yankees to 19 innings before allowing Stephen Drew's RBI double in the fifth and Derek Jeter's home run in the sixth. "We've been a streaky team all year, both bad and good, and right now we're in the middle of a bad streak."

Toronto tied the score in the eighth when Jose Reyes singled with two outs and Jose Bautista homered off Shawn Kelley on an 0-2 pitch, slamming his bat as he neared first base. Bautista homered in his fourth straight game against the Yankees and has hit seven of his 33 homers this year against New York.

"Any time you come back late and tie it up, you've got a good feeling," Toronto manager John Gibbons said, "but we've been having trouble scoring runs."

The Blue Jays went on to lose for the 18th time in their last 20 games at Yankee Stadium. Not the season Gibbons was hoping for in the second season of his second stint as Toronto manager.

"It's frustrating, but in this game the best teams go and the ones that aren't good enough, they don't go. It's that simple," Gibbons said.

After David Robertson (3-6) pitched a perfect ninth, Chris Young singled off Aaron Sanchez (2-2) leading off the bottom half. Speedy pinch-runner Antoan Richardson stole second, Brett Gardner sacrificed him to third on a 3-2 pitch and, with the infield in, Headley hit the bouncer to Lind.

"Defence matters in this game," Gibbons said. "Then they put a guy on there that could fly. It's a tough way to lose a game. No doubt. They're all tough."

LONG OUTINGS

Toronto starting pitchers have gone six innings or more in a team-record 24 consecutive games, five more than the previous mark in 1998.

TRAINER'S ROOM

Blue Jays: C Dioner Navarro pinch-hit and stayed in after missing Wednesday's game because of dizziness. He was hit on the mask by a foul tip Tuesday.

UP NEXT

LHP Mark Buehrle (12-9) starts the second game of the series Friday against Yankees RHP Hiroki Kuroda (10-9).

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MLB suspends, fines Jays' Stroman for throwing at hitter

Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Marcus Stroman is appealing his six-game suspension that Major League Baseball imposed for throwing at the head of Baltimore Orioles catcher Caleb Joseph.

MLB penalized Stroman on Wednesday and also fined the 23-year-old rookie an undisclosed amount.

The suspension had been set to start on Wednesday night when the Blue Jays played at Baltimore. Because Stroman is appealing, no penalty will take effect until there is a resolution.

On Monday night, Stroman threw a pitch that sailed past the head of Orioles catcher Caleb Joseph. Stroman stayed in the game, struck out Joseph to end the sixth inning and engaged the Baltimore dugout as he left the mound.

An inning earlier, Joseph was blocking the plate when the Blue Jays' Jose Reyes slid in for Toronto's second run. As a result, Joseph stepped on Reyes's left hand as he turned to make the tag, prompting some harsh words from the Jays shortstop.

---

The 6-game suspension handed Marcus Stroman is ...

After the game, Stroman told reporters it wasn't a purpose pitch.

"It was a fastball in that just kind of slipped in my hand," he said. "I'm a little excited and tried to get out of the inning. It's possibly my last hitter and I tried to execute a fastball in."

In a CBCSports.ca poll on Tuesday, 70 per cent of respondents didn't believe Stroman should be suspended for the wayward pitch.

Stroman, who allowed five runs on nine hits over six innings, admitted he struggled with his fastball command all evening.

Baltimore manager Buck Showalter, at his post-game news conference, said Stroman's actions were "borderline professionally embarrassing."

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Blue Jays swept by Orioles as wild card hopes fade

The Baltimore Orioles had every right to experience a letdown just one night after clinching their first AL East title in 17 years.

It would have made perfect sense, except that the players — and Steve Pearce, in particular — are simply having too much fun.

Pearce homered twice and drove in four runs as the Orioles beat the Toronto Blue Jays 6-1 Wednesday night for a three-game sweep.

One of the key components of Baltimore's surprising season, Pearce hit a solo shot in the third inning and a three-run drive in the fifth. His 20 homers this year are three more than the 31-year-old had previously in his entire career.

"It's just a great feeling," Pearce said. "I don't know, it's just great to contribute on this team and win ballgames. Personally, it feels great for me and I want to continue doing what I'm doing."

Pearce, who also connected Tuesday night in the division-clinching victory, has seven RBIs in his last two games.

"The key to the series was being able to get Pearce out," Toronto manager John Gibbons said. "He burned us last night, then again tonight. In a lot of ways that's a big, big part of the game right there."

In the seventh inning, Aaron Sanchez threw a high, inside pitch that sent Pearce to the ground. Then, for the third time in three games, the plate umpire warned both teams about throwing at batters.

"No intention," Sanchez said. "Just sailed on me."

It was the 10th win in 11 games for the Orioles, who have a shot to earn home-field advantage throughout the AL playoffs. Baltimore started the day three games behind the Los Angeles Angels with 11 to play.

Still, Orioles manager Buck Showalter began the process of resting some of his regulars, including Nick Markakis. Pearce took over in right field and Christian Walker made his major league debut at first base.

Walker doubled in the seventh for his first hit, and Baltimore completed its third sweep in five series this month.

"It's awesome," Walker said of his liner to left. "It's a relief to get that first one out of the way for sure. Hopefully it's the first of many."

The Orioles lead the AL East by 14 1/2 games, their biggest cushion since Oct. 1, 1970.

David Lough homered for Baltimore in the eighth, the team's major league-leading 199th of the season.

Bud Norris (14-8) allowed two hits and five walks in 5 1-3 scoreless innings to improve to 4-0 lifetime against Toronto. His performance came after a night in which the players drenched each other in champagne and beer in a celebration that lasted well past midnight.

"I tried to get as much sleep as I could," Norris said. "I was still pretty excited and everything else. Tried to get some rest and just come to the ballpark, kind of go through the routine. We've already clinched, but like I said I want to go out there and do my part and keep auditioning for the post-season."

J.A. Happ (9-11) gave up both homers to Pearce and lost his third straight start. Toronto pitchers have surrendered home runs in seven straight games.

"They are where they are at for a reason," Happ said. "They are playing at a high level right now all around."

Jose Reyes drove in a seventh-inning run for the Blue Jays, who have lost four in row. Their wild-card chances now are only mathematically viable.

Up next

Blue Jays: Toronto opens its final road series of the year Thursday night at Yankee Stadium. The Blue Jays (36-41) are already assured their 11th consecutive losing season on the road.

Orioles: Baltimore gets a day off Thursday before playing its final 10 games of the regular season, beginning Friday with a three-game home series against Boston.

Suspension appealed

Toronto rookie Marcus Stroman is appealing a six-game suspension he received for throwing at the head of Baltimore's Caleb Joseph on Monday.

"I would never intentionally throw at anyone," Stroman insisted.

But Showalter, who previously criticized Stroman for the pitch, said, "I had a lot of confidence MLB would look at it and do what needs to be done."

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Orioles defeat Blue Jays, win AL East title

Champagne was spraying all around him, and Dan Duquette couldn't help but laugh at the mayhem he helped create.

The Orioles clinched their first AL East title since 1997 by beating Toronto 8-2 Tuesday night, and Duquette was right in the middle of a long overdue celebration in the Baltimore clubhouse.

"The guys are having a great time, and they earned it," said Duquette, the team's executive vice president of baseball operations. "We've got some more work to do, and these guys know it, but congratulations to them on the division crown. They did a great job."

With their ninth win in 10 games, the Orioles clinched their second playoff appearance in three years following a run of 14 consecutive losing seasons.

After the final out, the Orioles converged behind second base. Fireworks soared in the outfield, while streamers and confetti sprayed throughout the boisterous crowd of 35,279.

The party continued in the clubhouse, where players wore goggles and smiles while covered in champagne and beer.

"It's everything I hoped for, man. It's an awesome experience," said right fielder Nick Markakis, who experienced six of those losing seasons. "We worked hard all season long to get where we are now. We got one step out of the way. Now we have a couple more steps to go."

It was Baltimore's ninth AL East title, but only its second since 1983, when the Orioles last won the World Series.

The franchise has enjoyed a rebirth under the guidance of manager Buck Showalter, whose 1,254th victory thrust him past mentor Billy Martin into sole possession of 36th place on the career list.

"There's probably not a better strategy guy in the game," reliever Darren O'Day said. "He sees things days in advance. He put guys in opportunities to succeed. It was pretty special."

Baltimore is 42-23 in a division that includes the defending World Series champion Boston Red Sox, the free-spending New York Yankees and pitching-rich Tampa Bay. The Orioles led by only four games on Aug. 6 before going on a 27-11 run.

"We're AL East champs," Steve Pearce said in the midst of the drenched clubhouse. "Awesome."

The clinching victory featured an unlikely list of contributors, not at all unusual for a team that often delved deep into its 25-man roster.

AL Wild Card

TEAM	GAMES
Oakland (83-67)	+1
Kansas City (82-68)	---
Seattle (81-69)	1
Cleveland (77-73)	5
Toronto (77-73)	5
N.Y. Yankees (76-74)	6

Ubaldo Jimenez was making his first start in a month; Pearce has morphed from a bit player to a key starter; and Jimmy Paredes didn't join the team until Aug. 28.

Pearce provided the Orioles with the lead for good with a three-run drive off Drew Hutchison (10-12) in the first inning. He has 18 home runs this year, one more than he had in 290 games as a part-timer from 2007-13.

Paredes hit a solo shot in the second to make it 4-2. It was his second homer in 10 games with Baltimore.

In addition, newcomer Alejandro De Aza hit a three-run triple in the seventh for a 7-2 lead. De Aza came to the Orioles in an Aug. 30 trade with the Chicago White Sox.

"It says a lot about the way these guys can come in and perform," Duquette said. "They're good baseball players."

Jimenez (5-9) survived a rocky start to limit the Blue Jays to two runs and two hits over five innings in his third start since July 5.

After signing a $50 million, four-year deal in the offseason, Jimenez struggled with his control for much of the season, sprained his ankle in a parking lot before the All-Star break and ultimately lost his place in the rotation.

Pressed into service because the Orioles played a doubleheader Friday, Jimenez issued four walks in the first two innings. But he bounced back to retire his last 10 batters.

"I had to find a way to be there for the team," Jimenez said. "After the start, I was able to do everything good."

In the other clubhouse, the Blue Jays bemoaned their role at the catalyst to the celebration.

"Watching what we had to watch was probably the worst thing you can experience as a player," Hutchison said. "It's something you never want to have to experience again. We have some games left here. We know what the odds are. We just have to win as much as we can. We still have a lot to play for with our pride."

Trainer's room

Blue Jays: Steve Tolleson was available off the bench after being hit on the arm by teammate Munenori Kawasaki's foul ball while sitting in the dugout the previous night. "We got lucky," manager John Gibbons said.

Orioles: RHP Steve Johnson will have surgery to have a bone spur removed from the back of his right shoulder later this month and should be ready for 2015 spring training. He did not pitch for Baltimore this year.

Up next

Bud Norris (13-8) brings a 7-1 record against AL East foes into a matchup with Toronto lefty J.A. Happ in the series finale.

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Will Blue Jays rally to earn wild card berth?

Time is running out.

The Blue Jays suffered an 8-2 loss to the Baltimore Orioles on Tuesday night. While the Orioles celebrated their first AL East division title in 17 years, the Blue Jays are at the mercy of a numbers game.

This is how the AL wild card race currently stands.

TEAM	GAMES
Oakland (83-67)	+1
Kansas City (82-68)	---
Seattle (81-69)	1
Cleveland (77-73)	5
Toronto (77-73)	5
N.Y. Yankees (76-74)	6

The Jays only have 12 games remaining to make one final push.

The problem remains the performance of the team.

The Jays have lost four of their last five games.

After Wednesday night's game against the Orioles, they travel to New York for a four-game series with the Yankees, then come home to play four games against Seattle before finishing off their regular season at Rogers Centre with three games against the newly crowned AL East champion Orioles.

The odds are against Toronto making the playoffs for the first time since its 1993 World Series season.

Still, the team has a chance, however remote that seems to be getting with each passing day. Besides, other teams have come back in the past, facing dimmer scenarios than Toronto finds itself in.

What will happen? Vote in our poll.

Will the Blue Jays rally to earn a wild-card spot?

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Jays pitcher Drew Hutchison wasn't thrilled to be watching a celebration following the Jays' defeat to the Orioles.

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