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TORONTO (AP) -Two big swings by
Vladimir Guerrero
provided all the offense the
Los Angeles Angels
needed Wednesday night.
Guerrero hit two home runs,
Jon Garland
remained unbeaten in Toronto and the Angels won their third straight game, edging the
Blue Jays
4-3.
It was the 34th career multihomer game for Guerrero, who came in batting .260 with just four homers, his lowest career totals
after 45 games.
Guerrero quickly set about erasing that slow start, clubbing a solo shot to center in the first and adding a three-run drive
into the second deck in left in the third.
''He's got hands as quick as anybody who's ever been in the batter's box,'' Angels manager
Mike Scioscia
said. ''He went out and got a breaking ball that wasn't too bad of a pitch and hit it out to left center, then got a tough
pitch inside and got his hands through and killed it. That's talent.''
The Angels only got two other hits, singles by
Garret Anderson
and
Chone Figgins
, but it was enough to beat the
Blue Jays
.
''We didn't have much offensively,'' Scioscia said. ''It's safe to say, if you're going to say somebody carried us tonight,
it would be Vlad.''
Guerrero, who finished 2-for-4 with four RBIs, struck out swinging in the fifth and flied to center in the eighth.
''I saw the ball very well tonight,'' Guerrero said through a translator. ''My swing felt great, comfortable. We needed the
home runs tonight with so few hits. That's my job, to help the team, especially on a night like tonight.''
Garland (5-3) has lost just once in his past seven starts. He gave up three runs and eight hits in six innings, walked two
and struck out one.
The right-hander is 6-0 with a 4.47 ERA in ten career games at Rogers Centre and 10-2 overall in 14 career starts against
the
Blue Jays
.
Garland is at a loss to explain his success in Toronto, or at other domed stadiums with artificial turf. He's 16-4 at such
ballparks in his career.
''Usually, for a sinkerballer who's supposed to get a lot of ground balls, it doesn't work out that way,'' Garland said. ''I
have no idea. I hope it continues though.''
Jose Arredondo
worked the seventh,
Scot Shields
pitched the eighth and
Francisco Rodriguez
closed it out in the ninth for his major league-leading 19th save.
Blue Jays
right-hander
Shaun Marcum
(4-3) worked on two days rest after going just one inning because of a rain delay in Sunday's game at Philadelphia. Marcum
lost for the first time since April 26 at Kansas City and has not won in three starts, his longest streak of the season.
Marcum allowed four runs and four hits in 6 2-3 innings. He walked three and struck out seven, and was left frustrated by
Guerrero's two drives.
''I threw two good pitches, pitcher's pitches, and he hit them out of the park,'' Marcum said.
Toronto scored one in the first on an RBI single by
Matt Stairs
, but the
Blue Jays
didn't get another hit until the fifth.
Alex Rios
made it 4-2 with Toronto's third hit of that inning, a two-out single to center.
The
Blue Jays
cut it to 4-3 in the sixth when
Lyle Overbay
doubled and scored when
Gregg Zaun
singled off Garland's leg, but
Brad Wilkerson
lined out to first to leave two runners stranded.
Arredondo gave up singles to
Aaron Hill
and Rios to begin the seventh and a passed ball put runners at the corners, but
Scott Rolen
struck out and Stairs grounded into a 3-6-3 double play.
Toronto put runners at first and second with one out in the eighth, but
Marco Scutaro
grounded into the
Blue Jays
' sixth double play of the series. The
Blue Jays
hit into four double plays in Tuesday's 3-1 defeat.
''We did just enough to win,'' Scioscia said. ''Our bullpen was on the edge again.''
Blue Jays
catcher
Rod Barajas
made a great sliding catch to retire
Mike Napoli
in the ninth, skidding into the Angels dugout and trapping the ball against his chest protector.
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