Red-hot Blue Jays keep pounding AL East leaders - MLB

TORONTO -- The Toronto Blue Jays completed their best month ever with yet another impressive win.

Dave Berg homered and tied a career high with four RBI as the Blue Jays set a franchise record for victories in any month with a 10-7 win over the slumping Boston Red Sox on Saturday.


Casey Fossum gives up a career-high nine runs and nine hits. (AP)

Mike Bordick hit a two-run homer in a five-run sixth inning for the Blue Jays, who went 21-8 in May. Toronto had twice won 20 games in a month.

"No other Blue Jay team has had 21 wins a month? Wow, that's special to be a part of," said Tom Wilson, who went 3-for-4 with three runs scored. "Everything is clicking right now."

Manny Ramirez and Kevin Millar homered for the Red Sox, who lost their season-high fourth in a row.

The Blue Jays went 10-18 in April, but have played especially well against top AL East competition to close this month. They swept a four-game series in New York last weekend and have taken the first two games of this series against Boston.

"It certainly makes up for last month," Toronto manager Carlos Tosca said. "Hopefully, we can continue to play this well."

Toronto leads the majors in runs, hits and total bases. The Blue Jays have scored 112 runs in the last 16 games.

"It seems like we always have a chance to put up more runs than the other team," Berg said.

Casey Fossum (4-4) lost his third straight decision by allowing a career-high nine runs on nine hits in 5 1/3 innings.

"Those guys in that lineup just killed me," Fossum said.

Tanyon Sturtze (5-4) got the last out of the sixth for the win. Cliff Politte pitched the ninth for his ninth save in 12 chances.

"It definitely seems like it's coming together for them," Boston's Nomar Garciaparra said.

Ramirez homered off Mark Hendrickson in the second, his eighth. Berg's RBI double and Chris Woodward's sacrifice fly gave Toronto a 2-1 lead in the bottom half.

Berg's three-run homer gave Toronto a 5-3 lead in the fourth, but Boston scored three times in the fifth.

After Todd Walker extended his hitting streak to 16 games with a double, Garciaparra hit an RBI triple. Ramirez hit an RBI single and Millar chased Hendrickson with a run-scoring double, giving Boston a 6-5 lead.

Wilson led off the Toronto sixth with a double and scored on Josh Phelps' tying single. Bordick followed with his first home run of the season, giving Toronto an 8-6 lead.

Frank Catalanotto's two-run double off Mike Timlin made 10-6.

Millar homered off Jeff Tam in the seventh.

Notes

Boston manager Grady Little dropped struggling center fielder Johnny Damon from the leadoff spot to ninth in the order. Damon went 1-for-3.
Toronto's Shannon Stewart has missed six of the past seven games because of a sore right hamstring. Stewart is expected to miss at least one more game.
Hendrickson allowed six runs on 10 hits in 4 1/3 innings.
Berg previously had four RBI on Aug. 10, 1999, against San Francisco.

Toronto vs. Boston

Notes