Rays 7, Blue Jays 6
Rookie catcher Robinson Chirinos singled home the winning run in the bottom of the 12th as the Tampa Bay Rays erased a pair of extra-innings deficits to earn a wild 7-6 victory over the visiting Toronto Blue Jays on Thursday afternoon.
B.J. Upton ignited the winning rally with a one-out triple off Toronto reliever Shawn Camp (1-2), who then intentionally walked the bases loaded. Elliot Johnson struck out swinging before Chirinos, who had tied the game with a run-scoring single in the 11th, ended things with a base hit to the left side that scored Upton.
Chirinos' heroics made a winner out of fellow rookie Brandon Gomes (1-1), who earned his first major-league victory.
Toronto jumped ahead twice in extras, only to see the Rays battle back each time. Colby Rasmus' 10th-inning RBI double was negated by a Desmond Jennings solo homer, while the Rays scored twice in the 11th - capped by Chirinos' RBI single to centre - to erase Jose Molina's two-run triple in the Jays' half of the inning.
Jose Bautista hit his league-leading 33rd home run for Toronto, while Evan Longoria's three-run homer in the fifth was the big blast for the Rays.