Blue Jays down Orioles, clinch top AL wild card

Jose Berrios pitched six strong innings, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. homered and the Toronto Blue Jays claimed the top American League wild-card spot hours after defeating the host Baltimore Orioles 5-1 in a rain-shortened game on Monday. The Blue Jays (91-69) sealed the top AL wild card when the Seattle Mariners (87-72) lost 4-3 to the Detroit Tigers later Monday night. Toronto will be at home for its entire best-of-three, first-round playoff series against either the Mariners or the Tampa Bay Rays. Whit Merrifield went 3-for-3 with two RBIs and a run to lead the Toronto offense. He was set to come to the plate with the bases loaded and two outs in the top of the eighth inning when the game was halted. Play never resumed, as the contest was called after a 55-minute delay. Berrios (12-7) stopped a personal two-game losing streak. His last three victories have come against Baltimore. Berrios allowed one run on three hits and three walks while fanning five. Tim Mayza worked a perfect seventh and was credited with his second save of the season as the Blue Jays extended their winning streak to four games. The Orioles (82-78) secured a winning record during the weekend, but they also were eliminated from playoff contention. They have lost seven of their past 10 games. Baltimore starter Dean Kremer (8-7) gave up four runs, three earned, in six innings. He yielded six hits and a walk while fanning four. Merrifield rapped a two-run single in the second inning to open the scoring. Guerrero's solo shot in the third inning was his 32nd long ball of the season and just his second homer in an 11-game stretch. Whitfield scored on Kremer's wild pitch in the fifth inning. Baltimore's Jorge Mateo scored on Anthony Santander's sacrifice fly in the third inning. Teoscar Hernandez and Raimel Tapia both had two hits for Toronto. The Orioles managed just three hits, all singles. One of them came from rookie Adley Rutschman, who also drew two walks. --Field Level Media