George Springer’s two-strike, two-out, RBI single in the 11th inning lifted the Toronto Blue Jays to their fifth straight victory, a 2-1 decision over the host Tampa Bay Rays to open a four-game series on Monday.
After challenging for catcher’s interference and failing, Toronto took its first lead when Springer ripped the next pitch, an 0-2 offering from Kevin Kelly (2-4), to left for a 2-1 lead.
Braydon Fisher (7-0) pitched out of a first-and-third, no-out jam in the bottom of the 11th by whiffing Brandon Lowe, Junior Caminero and Josh Lowe. Fisher threw two scoreless innings.
Ernie Clement doubled in the eighth inning and scored for Toronto (88-62), which produced five hits. The Blue Jays saw their American League East lead over the second-place New York Yankees (83-67) increase to five games.
Yandy Diaz had a perfect showing at the plate, going 3-for-3 with a double, an RBI and two walks for Tampa Bay (73-77).
In his major league debut, Blue Jays starter Trey Yesavage pitched five-plus innings and allowed one run and three hits. He struck out nine, walked two and retired eight straight at one point in his 69-pitch outing.
Scratched from his Sunday start for Triple-A Durham and sent to Tampa, Joe Boyle fired six scoreless frames and yielded just three hits for the Rays. He struck out five without a walk in his first big-league outing since Aug. 21.
Tampa Bay leadoff hitter Chandler Simpson welcomed Yesavage and his uniquely high pitching release to the majors with a sharp single to center. Diaz then sliced a double to right for the first run against the right-handed East Carolina alum.
However, Yesavage, a 22-year-old Pennsylvania native who pitched in the Futures Game two months ago in Atlanta, gave the home side fits after that. He looked like the power pitcher who fanned 160 and allowed just 54 hits in 98 frames in four levels of the Blue Jays’ farm system in 2025.
After managing just three singles against Boyle, the Blue Jays found no success against Rays left-hander Garrett Cleavinger, who tossed a perfect seventh.
In the eighth against right-hander Bryan Baker, Clement hit a leadoff double, and Tyler Heineman’s sacrifice bunt moved the runner to third. Andres Gimenez then tied it 1-1 with a sacrifice fly to left.
