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Overbay's key double, errors help Blue Jays down Rangers

Apr 12, 2008 - 4:51 AM ARLINGTON, Texas (Ticker) -- Lyle Overbay drove in three runs and Vernon Wells added a pair of RBI as the Toronto Blue Jays snapped a three-game losing streak with an 8-5 victory over the Texas Rangers on Friday.

Overbay broke open the game with a bases-clearing double in the third inning off Rangers starter Vicente Padilla that put Toronto up, 4-1.

"I think Lyle came up big for us," Wells said. "That's something that we're going to have to do up and down the lineup. When you have that opportunity, just do what you can and don't try to do too much."

Jesse Litsch (2-0) allowed two runs and six hits in 5 2/3 innings with five strikeouts and two walks.

"The kid's a winner," Toronto manager John Gibbons said. "He didn't have his best stuff tonight, but he knows how to execute and he can make big pitches when he has to."

Josh Hamilton homered and drove in a career-high four runs for the Rangers.

Hank Blalock also homered for Texas, which committed two errors in the seventh that led to three unearned runs.

Blalock gave the Rangers a 1-0 lead with a solo shot to right off Litsch in the second. However, the Blue Jays broke out on top with a four-run fourth inning, highlighted by Overbay's three-run double.

Toronto sent eight men to the plate against Padilla (1-1), who allowed five runs - four earned - and seven hits in six innings.

Wells tied the game at 1-1 with an RBI double to left field that plated David Eckstein, and one batter later Overbay drilled a bases-clearing double to right field for a 4-1 lead.

Texas, which was coming off a doubleheader sweep of Baltimore on Thursday, cut the lead to 4-2 in the fifth on a sacrifice fly by Hamilton. However, the Blue Jays went ahead, 5-2, as Gregg Zaun singled and later stole home as part of a double steal.

Toronto then tacked on three more runs in the seventh, thanks to a pair of Texas errors.

"We had a night where we threw the ball around, but we were still in the game until the sixth inning," Rangers manager Ron Washington said. "We'll be fine offensively. Everybody would like to be doing a little bit better, but it's a process."

The Rangers tried to rally as Hamilton blasted a two-run shot to right field in the seventh - his second of the season - to make it 8-4.

"They always have strong lefthanded power bats here," Gibbons said. "They put it up into that stream that goes out to right field and you never really feel safe."

Jason Frasor then allowed an RBI double to Hamilton in the ninth and was relieved by Scott Downs, who got the final two outs to record his first save of the season.