• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers

Rios' extra-inning blast helps Blue Jays defeat Orioles

May 25, 2007 - 3:56 AM BALTIMORE (Ticker) -- After sitting most of the game, Alex Rios made his presence felt.

Rios hit a solo homer in the top of the 10th inning as the Toronto Blue Jays posted a 5-4 victory over the Baltimore Orioles on Thursday.

Lyle Overbay had three doubles and Frank Thomas hit his 493rd career homer for Toronto, which has won eight of its last 12 games.

With the score tied at 4-4 with one out in the top of the 10th, Rios blasted a 1-0 pitch off reliever Danys Baez (0-4) over the left field wall for his 10th homer.

"I was just trying to get a pitch to hit," Rios said. "That's all I can do. I had no idea of the success I had against him."

Rios, who leads the team in home runs, is now 5-for-9 lifetime vs. Baez.

"It's very disappointing," Baez said. "I'm going to keep working hard and do the best I can."

It was the fifth homer Baez has surrendered in 21 innings in 2007, after yielding only three in 59 2/3 last year.

"Hopefully it's not a devastating thing for him," Oriole manager Sam Perlozzo said. "We're obviously going to have to pick and choose a little later in the game until we get him back on track."

Casey Janssen (2-0), who entered the game in the eighth inning, earned the victory, and Jeremy Accardo allowed a one-out single to Kevin Millar in the 10th before retiring the final two batters for his fifth save of the season.

"We've had some injuries this year and those guys have established themselves in certain roles and they have been outstanding," Blue Jay manager John Gibbon said.

Janssen and Accardo have combined to throw 36 2/3 straight innings without allowing an earned run.

Baltimore, which has lost three of four, rallied before losing in extra innings for just the second time in six tries this season.

"All the losses are frustrating," Perlozzo said. "You don't like to lose any of them, especially when you have the lead late."

With the Orioles trailing, 2-1, in the bottom of the sixth, Patterson led off with a double off the right field wall. After Patterson moved to third on a groundout and Markakis was issued a two-out walk by Blue Jays starter Shaun Marcum, Tejada hit an 0-1 pitch into the left field seats to make the score 4-2.

"It was a fastball in," Marcum said. "He did a good job of keeping his hands inside. I thought it was a good pitch. He's a good hitter."

It was just Tejada's third homer and ninth extra base hit of the season. It was the first homer since April 25 for the 2002 American League MVP, who enter this game with a .372 slugging percentage, his lowest since his rookie season (.333).

"It's good to get the home run," Tejada said. "My strength is getting better. I'm feeling much better. It feels like my swing is coming around. I was happy to hit the ball so far."

However the Blue Jays rallied over the next two innings. Thomas led off the seventh with his sixth homer off Baltimore starter Jeremy Guthrie to make it 4-3. It was Thomas' first homer since May 12, leaving him seven short of 500.

"You should have heard the dugout when he hit his home run," Gibbons said. "They were real happy for him. We are just looking for some more consistency from him."

An inning later, Rios led off with an infield single and Overbay doubled to the base of the right field wall to put runners on second and third. Two batters later, Troy Glaus hit a sacrifice fly to left field, plating Rios and knotting the game at 4-4.

"You always want to contribute," Rios said. "They told me in the seventh inning that I was coming in, so I went into the locker room and took some dry swings. I knew we could comeback. We have a team that can hit."