ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) – Former Concordia Lutheran star Shane Baz pitched two-hit ball for five innings to win his major league debut and the AL East-leading Tampa Bay Rays cut Toronto’s lead in the wild-card chase, holding off the Blue Jays 6-4 on Monday night.
Tampa Bay holds a seven-game advantage over second-place Boston with 11 games remaining.
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The Blue Jays, who scored twice in the ninth inning and left the bases loaded, had their edge over the New York Yankees for the second AL wild-card spot drop to a half-game.
Baz (1-0) gave up a pair of home runs and little else, striking out five and walking none. The righthander recently was one of three Houston-area athletes on Team USA’s baseball team at the Tokyo Olympics.
Toronto got homers from Teoscar Hernández, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. and Marcus Semien.