The sixth inning changed everything. Toronto scored three times to break open a 1-1 game, turning a pitcher's duel into a 5-3 victory over Cleveland at Rogers Centre.
Kazuma Okamoto carried the Blue Jays offense with a home run and two RBIs. He tied the game 1-1 in the fourth with a 425-foot blast to center field, then capped Toronto's decisive sixth inning with a bases-loaded walk that scored Straw. Okamoto finished 2-for-3 with a walk, raising his season average to .237 with five home runs and 11 RBIs.
The sixth inning belonged to Toronto. Varsho singled home Guerrero Jr. to give the Blue Jays a 2-1 lead, then Giménez doubled to left field, scoring both Okamoto and Varsho to make it 4-1. Cleveland answered in the seventh when Fry homered to left, but Toronto immediately responded as Okamoto's walk with the bases loaded extended the margin to 5-2.
Kevin Gausman earned the victory with 6.2 innings of work, allowing six hits and two earned runs while striking out three. Carrying a 2.83 ERA, he improved to 2-1 on the season. Joey Cantillo took the loss for Cleveland, giving up six hits and three earned runs over five innings.
Toronto snapped a two-game losing streak to improve to 10-15, while Cleveland fell to 15-12 despite maintaining first place in their division. Gausman is eight strikeouts away from 2,000 career strikeouts, and Rhys Hoskins sits seven runs away from 500 career runs scored.