MINNEAPOLIS — After dropping the first two games of their four-game series against the Minnesota Twins, the Blue Jays entered Saturday looking for a much-needed win to keep pace in a crowded American League wild-card race.
It wasn’t mathematically a must-win for Toronto per se, but the club was determined to turn their momentum around after losing four of their past five, including three straight games for the first time since mid-August.
Behind some clutch performances from key veterans, namely Marcus Semien, George Springer (who both homered) and starter Robbie Ray, who battled through six innings while allowing one run, the Blue Jays got the win they needed, topping the Twins 6-1 at Target Field.
The Blue Jays remained two games back of a wild-card spot, but the victory gives Toronto positive energy heading into Sunday’s series finale against the Twins with a chance to salvage a split, a best-case scenario after they lost the first two games in underwhelming fashion.
“We did what we do tonight,” Semien said. “I think that when you hit a couple homers, (Teoscar Hernández’s) home run (in the second inning), I think it just got us going. We tied that game, we knew we had our ace on the mound and we put up some more runs and did our thing.”
As has been the case a lot this season, the long ball was key to Toronto’s offence.
