Yusei Kikuchi Walked None and Struck Out Seven; Blue Jays Beat Phillies 2-1

AP

10:58 JST, August 16, 2023

TORONTO (AP) — Cavan Biggio was hit in the foot by a pitch with the bases-loaded pitch in the eighth inning to force in the tiebreaking run in the Toronto Blue Jays’ 2-1 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies on Tuesday night.

Pinch-hitter Nathan Lukes walked against right-hander Seranthony Domínguez to begin the eighth, and Whit Merrifield reached when left fielder Kyle Schwarber couldn’t hold on to Merrifield’s sinking liner.

Brandon Belt struck out, and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. walked to load the bases before George Springer grounded into a force play, with third baseman Alec Bohm throwing out Lukes out at the plate.

Domínguez (2-3) hit Biggio with his next pitch, bringing Merrifield home from third.

Right-hander Jordan Hicks (2-7) struck out all three batters he faced for the victory as Toronto won its second straight after losing the previous three.

Activated off the injured list earlier Tuesday after missing 16 games because of a sore back, All-Star closer Jordan Romano finished for his 29th save in 32 chances.

Philadelphia has lost three in a row.

The Phillies opened the scoring in the sixth when Edmundo Sosa led off with a single and scored on Johan Rojas’ double to left.

Toronto tied it in the bottom half, with Springer singling with two outs to drive in Merrifield.

Blue Jays left-hander Yusei Kikuchi allowed one run and four hits in six innings. Kikuchi walked none and struck out seven.

Phillies right-hander Zack Wheeler allowed one run and three hits in seven innings. Wheeler walked four and struck out five. He’s 0-2 in six career starts against the Blue Jays.