Blue Jays 6, Yankees 2
TORONTO -- Anthony Gose and Adam Lind hit home runs and Todd Redmond pitched seven strong innings as the Toronto Blue Jays defeated the New York Yankees 6-2 on Thursday.
Redmond (4-2) held the Yankees to four hits, one walk and one run and struck out seven as the Blue Jays (70-82) won the rubber match of the three-game series to complete their homestand at 3-6.
Curtis Granderson homered for the Yankees (80-73) who entered Thursday 2 1/2 games out of an American League wild-card spot and finished their trip at 4-6.
Yankee starter Hiroki Kuroda (11-12) allowed eight hits, four walks and three runs while striking out seven in six innings to take his fifth loss without a win in his past seven starts.
Joba Chamberlain took over for New York in the seventh and did not retire a batter in allowing three runs on Lind's 22nd homer of the season, a blast to right on a 2-1 slider. Chamberlain walked Munenori Kawasaki to start the inning and Brett Lawrie followed with a single to extend his hit streak to six games.
Toronto opened a 2-0 lead in the third inning. Granderson hit his seventh homer of the season to right with one out in the sixth to cut the lead to one.
Gose answered with his second homer of the season with two out in the bottom of the sixth to make it 3-1. It was his third hit of the game against Kuroda.
Sergio Santos pitched a 1-2-3 eighth for the Blue Jays before a crowd of 32,003 at Rogers Centre.
Luis Perez retired one batter in the ninth for the Blue Jays before Alex Rodriguez walked and Robinson Cano singled.
Jeremy Jeffress took over and walked Alfonso Soriano to load the bases and was replaced by Casey Janssen. Vernon Wells grounded out to second, scoring one run. Lyle Overbay grounded out to first to end the game and as Janssen earned his 32nd save.
The Blue Jays scored twice in the third. Gose led off with a single and cruised home on a double to left-center by Jose Reyes. Reyes took third on a sacrifice by Kawasaki and came home on Lawrie's chopper to third.
The Blue Jays loaded the bases on a single and two walks, but Kuroda struck out Ryan Goins to prevent further damage.
NOTES: RHP Mariano Rivera who is retiring at the end of the season, was honored in a pregame ceremony, with the Blue Jays donating $10,000 to the Mariano Rivera Fund and presenting the Yankees closer with an Inuit sculpture. Blue Jays LHP Darren Oliver, Janssen and RF Jose Bautista took part in the presentation. ....1B Edwin Encarnacion had successful surgery in Cleveland on Thursday to clean up cartilage in his left wrist. ... Toronto RHP Esmil Rogers (5-7, 4.47 earned-run average) will start in Friday's opener of a three-game series at Boston. LHP Jon Lester (14-8, 3.75 ERA) starts for the Boston Red Sox. ... Yankees LHP CC Sabathia (13-13, 4.90 ERA) will start Friday against San Francisco Giants RHP Tim Lincecum (10-13, 4.40 ERA) in the opener of a three-game series at Yankee Stadium.
