The Blue Jays were eliminated from playoff contention earlier this week, but they still fought hard on Friday night.
The Toronto Blue Jays kicked off the final series of the season with a resounding 6-5 win over the Cincinnati Reds on Friday night at Rogers Centre.
The Jays overcome a 5-2 deficit by scoring four runs in the bottom of the seventh to earn the victory. They are now 78-82 and will do their best to finish as close to .500 as possible.
Here's how it happened
--The Jays actually took a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning on doubles by Alejandro Kirk and Kazuma Okamoto. For Okamoto, it was his 25th double of the campaign.
--The Reds cut it to 2-1 in the second inning when Eugenio Suarez hit his 26th homer of the season.
--Elly De La Cruz hit his 30th double of the season in the top of the third inning to make it 3-2 and then Sal Stewart singled to make it 4-2 later in the frame.
--The Reds extended the lead to 5-2 later in the frame on a Hector Rodriguez groundout.
--The Blue Jays started the comeback in the seventh on a single by Vladimir Guerrero Jr., which made it 5-3 and then Okamoto doubled in two more runs to make it 5-5.
Toronto Blue Jays third baseman Kazuma Okamoto (7) hits an RBI double against the Cincinnati Reds in the first inning at Rogers Centre. Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images--Nathan Lukes singled in a run to make it 6-5.
--Louis Varland earned his 35th save of the year, a remarkable accomplishment considering he spent the first month of the season as a set-up man behind Jeff Hoffman, who was eventually traded to the Minnesota Twins.
--Making his final start of the season, Jose Soriano went three innings, giving up five earned runs on eight hits. He walked none and struck out five. He ends his season at 12-8 with a 3.91 ERA and he'll enter next season as one of the top three pitchers in the team's rotation, behind Dylan Cease and potentially Trey Yesavage.
Up next
The two teams will play in the penultimate game of the season on Saturday afternoon at 3:07 p.m. ET. Young right-hander Rhett Lowder will start for the Reds while Yesavage goes for the Jays.
Lowder has had a difficult season, like most of the Reds pitchers. He's 6-12 with a 6.01 ERA. Yesavage has also had a difficult season, marked by two separate injured list stints. He's missed time with a right shoulder issue and a left knee issue. He's managed to go 5-5 with a 3.67 ERA and he'll work to stay healthy next season.
