The Toronto Blue Jays battled back from an early four-run deficit but fell 9-7 to the Houston Astros in 11 innings Tuesday afternoon at Rogers Centre. The loss dropped Toronto to 39-40 on the season and evened the three-game series at one game apiece.
Making his first start of the season, Shane Bieber allowed four runs, including three consecutive Houston home runs in the fourth inning by Yainer Diaz, Cam Smith and Taylor Trammell. The Astros built a 4-0 lead before Toronto began its comeback.
Newly acquired infielder Luis Urías sparked the Blue Jays with a two-run homer in the fourth inning, his first home run with Toronto. Later, Daulton Varsho crushed a game-tying two-run homer in the seventh inning to knot the score at 4-4.
Toronto appeared to take control in the eighth when Kazuma Okamoto delivered a two-run single, giving the Blue Jays a 6-4 advantage. However, Houston answered in the ninth, tying the game on a catcher’s interference call and a sacrifice fly.
The game remained deadlocked until the 11th inning when former Blue Jay Joey Loperfido blasted a three-run homer to put the Astros ahead 9-6. Okamoto drove in Toronto’s final run in the bottom half of the inning, but the Blue Jays could get no closer.
Okamoto finished with three hits and three RBIs, while Varsho collected three hits and a home run. Urías made a strong impression in his Toronto debut with a pair of hits and two RBIs. Despite the offensive effort, the Blue Jays were unable to overcome Houston’s late rally in a game that lasted 11 innings and featured 28 combined hits.
Toronto and Houston conclude their series on Wednesday at Rogers Centre.
