Gurriel homers twice as Jays pound White Sox

[July 28, 2018]  Lourdes Gurriel Jr. led a five-homer barrage with two solo shots, Marcus Stroman pitched into the seventh inning and the visiting Toronto Blue Jays defeated the Chicago White Sox 10-5 Friday night at Guaranteed Rate Field.

Randal Grichuk hit a two-run homer, and Curtis Granderson and Kendrys Morales each added solo blasts in the opener of a three-game series.

Gurriel added a double in going 3-for-5 and matched the club record (Tony Fernandez, 1986) with his ninth straight multi-hit game.

Stroman (4-7) gave up two runs on seven hits and one walk in 6 2/3 innings. The right-hander struck out three and won consecutive starts for the first time this season.

White Sox starter Reynaldo Lopez (4-9) gave up all five home runs among seven hits and eight runs surrendered in 4 1/3 innings. He also walked four and struck out three.

Granderson led off the game with his 10th homer of the season, and Gurriel followed with his sixth.

White Sox manager Rick Renteria and pitching coach Don Cooper were ejected in the first inning after arguing a checked swing on a walk to Morales.

The Blue Jays scored three more in the second. Russell Martin walked, and Grichuk hit his 14th homer of the season. Granderson walked and scored on Justin Smoak's two-out double.

The White Sox scored a run in the third when Adam Engel drew a one-out walk, took second on a single by Yoan Moncada and scored on a two-out single by Jose Abreu.

Gurriel hit his second homer of the game in the fourth.

Jays shortstop Lourdes Gurriel Jr. (13) hits a double during the eighth inning against the Chicago White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field. Mandatory Credit: Patrick Gorski-USA TODAY Sports

Morales led off the fifth with his 12th homer of the season. Two batters later, Teoscar Hernandez walked, and Thyago Vieira replaced Lopez. He immediately gave up Martin's RBI double, then hit Grichuk and Devon Travis with pitches to load the bases before throwing a wild pitch to score Martin. Granderson hit a sacrifice fly to stretch the lead to 10-1.
 
 The White Sox scored a run in the seventh on a two-out triple by Nicky Delmonico followed by a double by Engel. Joe Biagini replaced Stroman and got the final out on a grounder, then threw a perfect eighth.
 
 Chicago used infielder Matt Davidson to pitch a perfect ninth. He also pitched an inning June 30.
 
 Oliver Drake, claimed off waivers from the Los Angeles Angels this week, made his first Blue Jays appearance in the bottom of the ninth. He gave up three runs on doubles by Daniel Palka and Tim Anderson, Delmonico's second triple of the game and an infield single by Engel.
 
 --Field Level Media

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