ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Ricky Romero and Jon Rauch combined on a three-hitter, Jose Bautista hit his 32nd homer and the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Tampa Bay Rays 3-1 on Tuesday night.
Romero (9-9), who didn’t allow a hit until Desmond Jennings started the sixth with a homer, struck out seven and walked four over eight innings. Rauch allowed two-out singles in the ninth to Casey Kotchman and B.J. Upton before retiring Matt Joyce on a fly to left on a 3-0 pitch for his 10th save.
Toronto, which is three games over .500 (56-53) for the first time since April 8, also got a homer from Yunel Escobar.
Tampa Bay was one-hit by Seattle’s Michael Pineda in a 3-2 loss to the Mariners last Saturday. The Rays have lost 11 of 17.
