Blue Jays 10, Mariners 2
TORONTO -- Melky Cabrera and Mark DeRosa hit fifth-inning home runs and starter Brandon Morrow had his longest outing of the season, leading the Blue Jays to a 10-2 win over the Seattle Mariners on Sunday.
Cabrera led off the fifth with his first homer of the season, giving Toronto (11-21) a 4-2 lead.
Then three batters later, DeRosa took Joe Saunders' 3-and-1 offering deep over the center-field wall for his second of the season, a three-run shot giving the Jays a 7-2 lead.
The victory snapped Toronto's four-game losing streak and ended Seattle's (15-18) three-game winning streak.
Toronto came in having lost eight of nine, including all four previous games in May while being outscored 25-3. The Jays concluded their six-game homestand at 2-4.
Saunders (2-4), who came in with an 0-3 record to go along with a 12.51 ERA on the road, went five innings, allowing seven earned and nine hits for his fourth loss of the season.
Toronto made it 8-2 in the sixth when Cabrera scored.
The Jays added to their lead, matching a season high for runs scored, in the seventh as DeRosa and Maicer Izturis scored, giving Toronto a 10-2 cushion.
Seattle got to Blue Jays starter Brendan Morrow in the fifth.
After back-to-back walks to Justin Smoak and Dustin Ackley, Jesus Montero reached on an infield single to third, loading the bases.
Robert Andino's fielder's choice to short scored Smoak. Two batters later, Kyle Seager's sacrifice fly scored Ackley, cutting the Jays' lead to 3-2.
Morrow (1-2), who came in 3-1 with a 3.04 ERA against his former team, went eight innings striking out eight while allowing two earned runs and three hits. Morrow threw 67 of his 115 pitches for strikes.
The right-hander spent the first three seasons of his career in Seattle.
Sunday marked the longest start for any Blue Jays starter this season.
Victoria, British Columbia native Michael Saunders made an excellent leaping grab against the center-field wall in the bottom of the third, robbing J.P. Arencibia of extra bases.
The Blue Jays opened a 3-0 lead in the second thanks to runs from Arencibia and DeRosa.
Arencibia led off the inning with a single, advanced to third on DeRosa's double and scored on a Izturis single to right. DeRosa scored three batters later on a Munenori Kawasaki groundout to short.
Toronto got on the board in the first when Rajai Davis scored on a Jose Bautista sacrifice fly to shallow right field.
Mariners left fielder Jason Bay, who came in riding a season-high seven-game hitting streak, struck out twice, going 0 for 4.
Smoak, who was 6 for 13 during a four-game hitting streak, went 0 for 3 with a strikeout.
NOTES: Blue Jays third baseman Brett Lawrie was given the day off for just the first time since joining the Blue Jays on April 16. "He's just banged up. It's a good day for a day off," Jays manager John Gibbons said. ... Toronto had lost eight of nine coming into Sunday's game, including all four in May in which they'd been outscored 25-3. ... Seattle had lost 33 of 46 at Toronto's Rogers Centre before this series. ... Mariners starting pitchers Felix Hernandez and Hisashi Iwaukuma combined for a 1.61 ERA in the first two games of the series. ... Seattle ranks second in the American League with 19 quality starts from their starting pitchers.
