DETROIT – Kevin Gausman delivered a masterful performance, striking out 10 over six one-hit innings to outduel reigning AL Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal and lead the Toronto Blue Jays to a 6-1 victory over the Detroit Tigers on Saturday night.
The game remained locked in a scoreless duel for seven innings. Gausman allowed just one hit and a walk, while Skubal countered with six scoreless frames of his own, surrendering five hits and striking out seven.
“That’s a heavyweight fight,” Blue Jays outfielder George Springer said of the matchup. “Those guys went blow for blow and fought the whole game. But Gausy was pitching lights out. That’s just a hell of a ballgame.”
Toronto’s offense finally broke through against the Tigers’ bullpen in the eighth inning when a Bo Bichette two-run single snapped the stalemate. The Blue Jays then sealed the win with a four-run ninth, featuring home runs from Nathan Lukes, Springer, and Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
The victory marked Toronto’s fourth consecutive win and their 21st in the last 26 games, extending their AL East lead to 6.5 games over the New York Yankees. “It looked like three years ago,” Toronto manager John Schneider said of Gausman’s dominant outing. “His splitter was a difference-maker.”
Conversely, the Tigers have now lost six straight and 12 of their last 13, though they maintain a comfortable lead in the AL Central. Detroit’s offense, which has scored only 33 runs during the slump, was held to just two singles by Jake Rogers.
Braydon Fisher (4-0) earned the win after pitching a perfect seventh inning, while reliever Will Vest (5-2) took the loss. The Tigers avoided a shutout with a ninth-inning RBI groundout from Riley Greene.
The teams conclude their series Sunday, with Toronto’s Max Scherzer (1-0, 5.14 ERA) scheduled to face Detroit’s Jack Flaherty (5-10, 4.77 ERA).
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