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Rasmus helps Jays take down BoSox

Jun 26, 2012 - 6:00 AM Boston, MA (Sports Network) - Colby Rasmus finished with three hits, including a two-run home run, and three runs batted in, as Toronto outlasted Boston, 9-6, in a rain-plagued start to the three-game set at Fenway Park.

Jose Bautista hit a two-run home run, as did J.P. Arencibia, for the Blue Jays, who have won three of four overall. Henderson Alvarez (4-6) treaded water through five frames, giving up five runs -- three earned -- on six hits with two strikeouts and one walk before leaving with right elbow soreness.

"When he went out for the sixth inning he had trouble getting loose," Toronto manager John Farrell said of the injury. "It was a precautionary thing. We'll get him an MRI tomorrow.

Felix Doubront (8-4) took the loss, giving up seven runs -- five earned -- on 11 hits with two strikeouts and one walk over six frames. David Ortiz hit a pair of home runs and drove in three for the Red Sox, who saw a brief two-game winning streak come to an end in a game marred by a one-hour, 56-minute rain delay.

"He was trying to throw a lot of strikes, and it seems a lot of them got hit," said Boston manager Bobby Valentine. "It wasn't his best outing, but he will improve on that."

A 40-minute first inning featured plenty of fireworks as the teams combined for six runs. Brett Lawrie kicked it off with a single to right, stole second and trotted the rest of the way home when Rasmus' fly ball slipped inside the pole down the right-field line for a two-run homer.

Bautista reached on an error by Will Middlebrooks and raced home on Edwin Encarnacion's double that ricocheted high off the Green Monster in left- center field. He advanced to third on Yunel Escobar's single and scored when Rajai Davis beat out a possible double-play grounder to short.

Boston sliced the deficit in half with a quick two runs in the home at-bat as Dustin Pedroia tripled to right and scored when Ortiz blasted a long drive deep into the right-center field seats.

The hits kept coming off Doubront in the second as Ben Francisco doubled, advanced to third on Lawrie's second hit of the game and scored when Rasmus' grounder found its way back through the middle. In the all, the Blue Jays had nine hits through three frames against the Red Sox southpaw, including four players with multi-hit games in the early going.

Boston, with the aide of Toronto miscues, put together a two-out rally to draw within one. Pedroia singled to center with two outs in the third and on a steal attempt, raced to third when Escobar threw wildly to no one covering the base. Ortiz then walked before Jarrod Saltalamacchia reached on Kelly Johnson's error, allowing Pedroia to score. Adrian Gonzalez's single then plated Ortiz for a 5-4 game.

The Red Sox squared the contest in the fourth with Cody Ross' leadoff double resulting in the tying run. He scored just after his two-bagger down the third-base line on Ryan Kalish's single to center.

Toronto, after squandering the early four-run lead, went back in front in titantic fashion in the sixth. Francisco crushed a double off the left-center field wall and Arencibia followed with a long drive off the Sports Authority sign above the highest part of the Green Moster in left for a 7-5 game.

Bautista's line drive two-run shot that climbed just above the Green Monster added some insurance and opened a four-run edge in the seventh.

After the lengthy rain delay, Ortiz drove a belt-high pitch over the wall in dead center field for a 9-6 deficit in the eighth.

Casey Janssen struck out the side in the ninth for his eighth save of the season.

Game Notes

Ross has five extra-base hits in the last three games...Doubront gave up his career high in hits after just three frames...Ortiz has a league-leading nine home runs as a left-handed hitter against a southpaw pitcher this season. He also recorded his 20th career two-homer game...Brent Lillibridge, part of the trade that sent Kevin Youkilis to the Chicago White Sox, made his Red Sox debut as a defensive replacement in the ninth inning.