Baseball

Yusei Kikuchi Allowed Two Hits and Struck Out Six, The Blue Jays’ 2-0 Win over the Marlins

AP Photo/Lynne Sladky
Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Yusei Kikuchi follows through on a delivery during the first inning of the team’s baseball game against the Miami Marlins, Tuesday, June 20, 2023, in Miami.

11:06 JST, June 21, 2023

MIAMI (AP) — Ernie Clement and George Springer hit consecutive RBI singles in the eighth inning and the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Miami Marlins 2-0 on Tuesday night.

Yusei Kikuchi allowed two hits and struck out six in six innings to help Toronto even the series after falling 11-0 in the opener Monday night. The Blue Jays ended a 19-inning scoreless streak in the eighth against Tanner Scott (4-2).

Miami’s Luis Arraez went 1 for 4, dropping his major league-leading batting average to .398. The Marlins had won five in a row.

Santiago Espinal had a pinch one-out double and Clement followed with a pinch RBI single. Clement advanced on centerfielder Garrett Hampson’s throw to the plate and raced home from second after Springer’s broken bat single to left.

Yimi García (2-3) was the winner, pitching the seventh. Erik Swanson gave up Nick Fortes’ one-out double and Joey Wendle’s infield single in the eighth, and Tim Mayza relieved and retired pinch hitter Jesús Sánchez on a 5-4-3 double play.

Jordan Romano closed with a scoreless ninth for his 21st save.

Kikuchi retired the first nine before Arraez’s leadoff single in the fourth. Arraez was quickly erased after Jorge Soler grounded into a double play.

Matt Chapman had two hits and walked for the Blue Jays.

Marlins rookie Eury Pérez limited Toronto to three hits and struck out nine in his eighth career start. The 20-year-old right-hander was lifted after 80 pitches.