The Toronto Blue Jays bested their division rival, the Boston Red Sox in a much anticipated matchup at the Rogers Center in Toronto.
The Red Sox have been lagging and are currently stuck with a record of 7-10. This is good enough to give the historic Boston ball club a fourth-place spot in the hotly contested American League East. The Blue Jays, meanwhile, are at the top of the division with a stellar record of 11-6. The stage was set as the two met up to kick off a three-game series on Monday night.
Boston Red Sox bested by division-leading Blue Jays after youngsters come up big for the Canadian team
The two teams met for the second time in as many weeks. In last week's series, which took place at Fenway Park in Boston, the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Boston Red Sox 2-1 in the series, outscoring Alex Cora's team by a margin of 10-5 over the course of three games.
The series took place in Toronto, and both teams were hungry for a victory. Coming into the game, the Jays were 10-6, while the Boston Red Sox were 7-9.
Starting on the mound for the Boston Red Sox was Nathan Eovaldi, who lasted seven innings and gave up only two runs. It was then up to the Red Sox bullpen to contain the hot, young bats of the Blue Jays.
After Boston Red Sox outfielder Alex Verdugo hit a sacrifice fly in the top of the eighth to tie the game, it was up to Red Sox pitcher Matt Strahm to keep the game within reach.
"FIRST CAREER BIG LEAGUE GRAND SLAM FOR BO BICHETTE!" - @ Sportsnet
Bo Bichette stepped up to the plate in the top of the eighth inning. Tyler Danish went on to relieve Strahm, who had loaded the bases. With the bases loaded, Danish threw second baseman Bo Bichette a ball low and away that Bichette subsequently smacked to left field. The Jays went up 5-2 and proceeded to win the ballgame.
"Vladdy Guerrero Jr. tosses a football that ricochets into George Springer's nuts and Bo Bichette looks at the cam like....'yeah, those are my boys'" - @ Buckstache
It was the first grand slam of second baseman Bo Bichette's young career.
The teams have a pair of games left in the series. Both will be looking to gain some valuable ground.