San Diego led through four innings. Then the fifth arrived, and Kazuma Okamoto ended the game in one swing. His three-run homer to left center — 377 feet — turned a 2-2 tie into a 5-2 Toronto advantage, and the Blue Jays held on from there to win 5-3 Friday night at Petco Park before 41,886 fans.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TOR | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 9 | 0 |
| SD | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 10 | 0 |
Okamoto finished 1-for-3 with a walk, driving in all three of his team's runs in the decisive inning. The homer was his 22nd of the season, pushing his RBI total to 62. It was the kind of swing that renders the previous four innings irrelevant.
San Diego had looked comfortable early. Xander Bogaerts put the Padres ahead in the first, connecting on a two-run homer to left center — 401 feet — that scored Jackson Merrill and made it 2-0. The lead held until the fourth, when Alejandro Kirk's double to center scored Vladimir Guerrero to cut it to 2-1. Then came the fifth. Guerrero's infield single tied the game at 2-2, and two batters later Okamoto launched his three-run shot to put Toronto ahead 5-2 — a lead the Blue Jays would not relinquish. Merrill's single in the ninth scored Luis Campusano to make it 5-3, but Toronto closer Louie Varland, working around 3 hits, recorded his 19th save of the season.
JP Sears absorbed the loss, falling to 2-2 on the season. He allowed 3 runs on 6 hits over 4.1 innings, striking out 3 while throwing 72 pitches. San Diego's bullpen covered the final 4.2 innings, allowing 2 runs, but the damage had already been done. Toronto starter Shane Bieber exited after 4.2 innings having allowed 2 runs on 6 hits with 4 strikeouts. Mason Fluharty earned the win to improve to 4-0, with a 4.54 ERA.
The Blue Jays extended their winning streak to three games and improved to 45-49. San Diego dropped to 46-48, losing for the second consecutive game. Sears, who struck out 3 on the night, is now 17 away from 500 career strikeouts.