ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Shohei Ohtani and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. were both kept in the ballpark during Tuesday’s doubleheader.
Still, the top two home run hitters in the majors wound up center stage in the second game.
Guerrero hit an early RBI single and Ohtani struck out with the bases loaded for the final out as the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Los Angeles Angels 4-0 to split an unusual twinbill.
Justin Upton and Phil Gosselin each had two hits and two RBIs to help the Angels win the opener 6-3.
Toronto batted last and was the “home” team at Angel Stadium in the first game, a makeup from an April 11 rainout at the Blue Jays’ temporary home field early this season in Dunedin, Florida. In the regularly scheduled nightcap, the Angels were the home team.
Ohtani, who leads the majors with 37 homers, led off the second game with a triple against Ross Stripling into the right-field corner. That was Los Angeles’ only hit until the seventh inning, when Brandon Marsh and Kurt Suzuki got aboard with base hits. Jack Mayfield drew a walk with two outs before Jordan Romano struck out Ohtani on a 99 mph fastball to end the game.
“It was an ever better win just because of the way it ended. No one wanted Ohtani to come up with the bases loaded, but that tells you the type of pitcher Romano is,” Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo said. “He went right after him and did a great job against one of the best hitters in baseball.”
Guerrero, who has 35 home runs, gave Toronto a 1-0 lead in the first with an RBI single and then scored on Teoscar Hernandez’s bloop single. Lourdes Gurriel Jr. added a two-run single with the bases loaded in the sixth.
Guerrero had a huge fielding miscue in the first game when he misplayed Jo Adell’s popup in the fifth inning. He was unable to track the ball behind first base and let it glance off his glove as two runs scored to extend Los Angeles’ lead to 4-1.
Stripling was removed after the second inning of the nightcap due to a right oblique strain. Trevor Richards (1-1) worked two scoreless innings. It was Toronto’s 11th shutout, which is tied for fifth in the majors.
Los Angeles starter José Suarez (5-5) yielded four runs and seven hits with a walk and two strikeouts in 5 1/3 innings.
“There were a couple of soft-hit balls that led to the two runs in the first, but I thought Suarez settled in. His curveball was very pertinent, which is why he was able to pitch so deep into the game,” Angels manager Joe Maddon said.
UPTON, GOSSELIN DELIVER
Upton put the Angels on the board in the first game with a two-run single in the third. After the Blue Jays pulled to 4-3 in the fifth, Gosselin provided some insurance with a two-run single in the sixth.
Los Angeles right-hander Chris Rodriguez allowed only one run over four innings in his first career start at Angel Stadium.
Junior Guerra (3-2) got the win with a scoreless sixth, and Raisel Iglesias retired the side in the seventh for his 25th save.
Marcus Semien had three hits, including an RBI double in the third, for the Blue Jays.
Steven Matz (9-7) went 4 1/3 innings for Toronto. He was charged with four runs (two earned) and six hits. The left-hander struck out five and walked three.
TRAVELING HOME SHOW
Toronto joined the 1898 Cleveland Spiders and 1902 Cleveland Bronchos as the only big league teams to be the home team in four different ballparks during one season. However, the Blue Jays are the first team to play home games in four different states or provinces in the same season.
Although the Blue Jays batted last in the opener, all statistics and records will count as Angels home and Toronto road totals. According to baseball rules, the home team is based on the venue in which the game takes place.
FAMILIER SPOT
The Angels, blanked for the ninth time this year, fell to 57-57. It is the 22nd time this season they have a .500 record.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Blue Jays: RHP Trent Thornton was recalled from Triple-A Buffalo as the 27th man for the doubleheader.
Angels: Rodriguez was the team’s 27th man. … RHP Griffin Canning will miss the rest of the season due to a lower back stress fracture.
UP NEXT
Blue Jays rookie RHP Alek Manoah (4-1, 2.58 ERA) faces Los Angeles for the first time in his career Wednesday. Angels RHP Dylan Bundy (2-8, 6.14) has allowed three earned runs over 10 2/3 innings in two starts since returning to the rotation July 29.
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