The Toronto Blue Jays topped the Milwaukee Brewers 4-1 in a battle of two division-leading ball clubs.
Blue Jays starter Drew Hutchinson was impressive, going seven innings, giving up one run on three hits and fanning 10.
“When he’s on, he’s on,” Toronto manager John Gibbons said in his postgame press conference on MLB.com. “He’s got that knack, you know, working out of some jams. He can be really, really good. It was a good ballgame. We played good today on an important day for us to win a game; it seems like it’s been awhile.”
In the bottom of the first inning, Jose Bautista made his return from the disabled list memorable as he belted a 450-foot solo home run into the center field stands.
Teammate Colby Rasmus made the score 2-0 with his own solo blast in the fifth inning.
Ryan Braun pulled the Brewers within one with an RBI double in the sixth. The next inning, Milwaukee loaded the bases, but Hutchinson got Jean Segura to fly out to end the threat.
In the eighth, the Blue Jays expanded their lead. Melky Cabrera smacked an RBI triple to the gap in right center. Two batters later, Cabrera scored on a double by Edwin Encarnacion.
“You don’t always need [those insurance runs], but it gives you a little extra breathing room,” Gibbons said. “You know Casey [Janssen] comes in, and he doesn’t have to be perfect with every pitch. He knows he’s got a little breathing room. He can attack guys a little differently.”
Janssen pitched the ninth and recorded his 13th save of the season, reports The Associated Press.
Milwaukee starter Marco Estrada suffered the loss, falling to 7-5. He gave up two runs on six hits in six innings of work.
The teams complete the two-game set on Wednesday with an afternoon game. First pitch is scheduled for 12:37 p.m. ET.