The game was decided in the first inning, when Cleveland scored five times to seize control of what became an 8-6 victory over Toronto at Rogers Centre. The Guardians never trailed after their opening burst, weathering multiple Blue Jays rallies to improve to 14-12.
Angel Martinez carried the Cleveland offense with two home runs and four RBIs, going 2-for-4 in the victory. Martinez is batting .284 with five homers and 14 RBIs this season. Daniel Schneemann added a homer and RBI double, while George Valera drove in two runs with a first-inning double.
Cleveland's first-inning explosion began when Schneemann homered to right field. Valera then doubled home Hoskins and Ramírez to make it 3-0, before Martinez capped the rally with a two-run homer to right center. Toronto answered immediately as Guerrero Jr. drove in Schneider with a groundout and Sánchez homered to center, but the damage was done.
Max Scherzer absorbed the loss for Toronto, lasting just 2.1 innings while allowing seven runs on six hits and three walks. His ERA stands at 9.64. Gavin Williams earned the victory for Cleveland despite allowing six runs over six innings, improving to 4-1 with a 3.28 ERA. Cade Smith recorded his sixth save.
Vladimir Guerrero reached 1,000 career games in this contest. Rhys Hoskins is eight runs away from 500 career runs scored. Cleveland snapped a one-game losing streak, while Toronto fell to 10-14.