The Associated Press
Stephen Hawkins
ARLINGTON, Texas—Jose Bautista charged hard and reached down. Toronto’s right fielder quickly realized that the ball went under his glove and was rolling toward the warning track.
Bautista’s error in the seventh inning led to three Texas runs, as Delino DeShields kept running all the way home, and the AL East-leading Blue Jays closed an otherwise-impressive trip with a 4-1 loss yesterday. It ended their five-game winning streak.
Toronto went 6-2 on the trip, taking sole possession of the AL East lead from the New York Yankees by winning the first two games at the wild card-chasing Rangers.
“I’m very pleased with the way the guys played,” manager John Gibbons said, referring to the trip.
Yovanni Gallardo (11-9) threw 5 1-3 scoreless innings for his 100th career victory. The right-hander gave up three hits while striking out two and walking three on 101 pitches.
The Blue Jays lead the majors with 5.4 runs per game, and had outscored opponents 54-19 during their recent winning streak.
Gallardo has thrown 13 2-3 scoreless innings in two starts against them this season.
Gallardo became the fourth native of Mexico to win 100 games, joining Fernando Valenzuela (173), Esteban Loaiza (126) and Ismael Valdez (104).
DeShields had a part in every run even without an RBI. On the ball he hit in the seventh, slow-running catcher Bobby Wilson was going to be held up at third until the ball got past Bautista.
Rather than bases loaded, Wilson and Hanser Alberto scored with the speedy DeShields following close behind.
Texas never trailed after DeShields drew a walk from Marco Estrada (11-8) in the first and scored on Mitch Moreland’s single. DeShields finished 2 for 2 with three walks.
Estrada struck out six in six innings, and has allowed only nine runs in his last six starts.
Edwin Encarnacion stretched his hitting streak to 22 games, the longest in the majors this season, with an RBI double in the Toronto eighth.
He hit a scorching liner that got past DeShields in right-centre as Bautista scored from first.
After an eight-game trip, Toronto opens a nine-game homestand tonight against Detroit.
Elsewhere in the American League, the Rays beat the Twins 5-4; the White Sox defeated the Mariners 4-2; the Royals crowned the Orioles; and the Angels tamed the Tigers 2-0.
