Apr 26, 2019 3 min read

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. capped his major league debut with a double leading off the ninth inning for his first hit, and Brandon Drury followed with a winning two-run homer with two outs to lift the Toronto Blue Jays over the Oakland Athletics 4-2 on Friday night.

The 20-year-old son of Hall of Famer Vladimir Guerrero, considered the top prospect in the major leagues, arrived at Rogers Centre in a replica Montreal Expos jersey to honor his father, who was on hand. He grounded out in the second, was robbed of an extra-base hit by left fielder Stephen Pinder’s leaping catch in the fourth, then flied out to right in the sixth.

Guerrero hit an opposite-field double down the right-field line on a 2-2 fastball from Yusmeiro Petit (0-1). Billy McKinney sacrificed pinch-runner Alen Hanson and, with the infield in, Teoscar Hernández lined out to second baseman Jurickson Profar.

Drury followed with a drive over the center-field wall, and Guerrero, arm raised, was the first Blue Jays player out of the dugout to celebrate.

Ken Giles (1-1) struck out two on a one-hit ninth.

Eric Sogard’s first-inning homer and Randal Grichuk’s third-inning RBI single built a lead off Mike Fiers, but Robbie Grossman hit a two-run homer in the eighth off Joe Biagini.

Guerrero Jr. missed the start of the season after an oblique injury in spring training. He played four rehab games at Class A Dunedin before moving up to Triple-A Buffalo, where he hit .367 with three homers and eight RBIs in eight games.

By delaying his debut until Friday, the Blue Jays ensured his maximum service time this year would be 157 days – 15 days shy of being eligible for free agency after the 2024 season.

Boston-Tampa Bay postponed:

The Boston Red Sox had to wait a day for a chance to catch up on the AL East-leading Tampa Bay Rays.

The series opener Friday was postponed because of rain and rescheduled as part of a day-night doubleheader on June 8.

World Series champion Boston has won five of seven and trails Tampa Bay by 5½ games. The Rays won 11 of their first 14 but have lost six of their last 11, getting swept at home by the Red Sox in a three-game series last weekend.

National League

San Diego 4, Washington 3: Hunter Renfroe hit a tiebreaking solo drive in the ninth inning, and the San Diego Padres rallied to beat the Washington Nationals, 4-3.

Renfroe, who entered as a defensive replacement in the eighth inning, drove Sean Doolittle’s 1-2 pitch over the wall in left-center for his fifth homer. It was only the second run allowed by Doolittle (3-1) in 12 appearances.

Craig Stammen (3-1) got the win despite allowing Carter Kieboom’s solo homer in his major league debut. The shot to left-center was the first hit for Kieboom, who was promoted from Triple-A Fresno on Friday.