Boston had clawed all the way back. Two home runs in the eighth inning had erased a three-run deficit and tied the game at 3-3. Then the ninth arrived, and Aroldis Chapman could not hold it. Brandon Valenzuela doubled to left, Ernie Clement scored, and the Toronto Blue Jays walked out of Fenway Park with a 4-3 win.
Trey Yesavage gave Toronto every reason to win. The right-hander worked 7.1 innings, allowing 3 runs on 4 hits with 6 strikeouts and no walks on 95 pitches. He did not factor in the decision, but his start kept the Blue Jays in front long enough for the bullpen to finish the job. Tommy Nance earned his first win of the season, and Mason Fluharty recorded his first save, a clean ninth on 5 pitches.
Toronto built its lead early. Vladimir Guerrero homered to center in the first inning, a 410-foot shot that put the Blue Jays ahead immediately. In the second, Kazuma Okamoto scored on a sacrifice fly by Giménez to make it 2-0. Nathan Lukes added a solo home run to right center in the seventh, pushing the lead to 3-0. Boston answered in the same inning when Rafaela scored on a groundout by Willson Contreras, but the deficit remained. The eighth brought the drama: Isiah Kiner-Falefa homered to left to make it 3-2, and Caleb Durbin followed with a home run to left center that tied the game at 3-3. It was not enough.
Sonny Gray pitched well for Boston and received nothing for it. He went 7.0 innings, allowing 3 runs on 6 hits with 4 strikeouts and 1 walk. His ERA stands at 3.12 and his record at 8-1, but the bullpen could not protect the tie. Chapman, entering with the game level, allowed Valenzuela's go-ahead double and took the loss, falling to 0-2 on the season with a 0.83 ERA.
Toronto extended its winning streak to two games and improved to 36-38. Boston dropped to 29-42, losing for the third straight time. Gray is 20 strikeouts away from 2,000 for his career.