Blue Jays 1, Mariners 0
Jose Bautista reached the 50-homer plateau Thursday afternoon, providing the game's lone offense as the Toronto Blue Jays got past the Seattle Mariners 1-0.
Bautista wasted no time getting the milestone out of the way, belting a Felix Hernandez offering over the left-field wall in the first inning to become baseball's 26th member of the 50-homer club – and the first to do it in a Jays uniform. Bautista is the first major-leaguer to hit 50 homers in a season since Alex Rodriguez and Prince Fielder both turned the trick in 2007.
The game became a pitcher's duel from that point on, with Jays starter Shawn Hill (1-2) and a quartet of relievers outdoing Hernandez (12-12) in the rubber match of the three-game series.
Hill tossed five scoreless innings, striking out seven to earn his first major-league victory since April 18, 2009.
Kevin Gregg worked around a leadoff single in the ninth inning to record his 35th save.
It was the same tired story for Hernandez, who allowed just two hits in his sixth complete game of the season but didn't get any help from his lineup. Hernandez fell back to the .500 mark for the year despite leading the American League in ERA (2.31) and strikeouts (227).
Ichiro Suzuki achieved his own milestone in defeat, rapping out a single and a double to become the first player in major-league history to record 10 consecutive 200-hit seasons. Adam Moore added a pair of hits for defeat.