Saturday, May 2, 2009

Hill goes from goat to hero; Jays win in 11th

How about that Aaron Hill?

How about those Toronto Blue Jays?

The Blue Jays won again on Saturday, clinching their seventh series win in eight tries in 2009, rallying for an improbable 5-4 win over the visiting Baltimore Orioles in 11 innings.

Hill's RBI single in the last of the 11th drove in Rod Barajas with the winning run, as the Blue Jays improved to 17-9.

It was Hill's error that led to Baltimore's go-ahead run in the top of the 10th.

Nick Markakis, who went 0-for-4, reached base on Hill's error, moved to second on a single and went to third on a flyout. He then scored on an RBI groundout, giving the O's a 4-3 lead.

It seemed as though the Orioles were going to snap their four-game losing streak. And what a tough way it would have been to lose the ball game.

But instead, Hill led off the bottom half of the 10th with a home run off Baltimore closer George Sherrill, tying the game at 4-4.

Jason Fraser (4-0) pitched a scoreless inning in the top of the 11th, before the Blue Jays won it in the bottom half.

Barajas led off the Jays' 11th with a single, went to second on a sacrifice, and came around to score the game-winner on Hill's single.

What an eventful last couple of innings for Hill, who had gone 0-for-4 before his sixth homer in the 10th.

Adam Jones homered with one out in the first inning to give Baltimore a 1-0 lead, before the Blue Jays struck for three runs in the second.

Aubrey Huff's two-run double tied things up in the third inning for the O's.

Then the pitching took over for the next six innings, as neither team scored again until Hill's miscue led to the O's fourth run.

Robert Ray pitched well for the Blue Jays in his first big-league start, allowing three runs in 5 2/3 innings. The right-hander allowed four hits and four walks, and struck out two.

Ray, who was called up the day before, took over David Purcey's spot in the Jays' rotation.

Meanwhile, the Orioles' Brad Bergesen allowed three runs in six hits in six innings in his third major-league start.

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