Anthony Santander hits first Jays homer in return to Baltimore, but O’s ultimately prevail​on April 12, 2025 at 11:01 pm

As expected, Anthony Santander’s return to Baltimore was an occasion to renew friendships with former teammates and bask in the warm glow of fans’ appreciation.

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It would be a stretch to call it a love-fest, but the adulation and recognition were authentic.

Sentiment aside, Toronto doled out plenty of free-agent money to lure Santander because of his bat and the switch-hitting outfielder finally delivered his first home run as a Blue Jay, albeit in a losing cause as the Orioles rallied from a three-run deficit for a 5-4 win.

A clearly relieved Santander was fitted with the home run jacket, looking quite comfortable given the extended time he wore it in the team dugout.

Toronto (8-7) entered the day in first place in the AL East, despite having hit just six homers. Santander’s blast — 404 feet to right centre in the third inning — was the first from the top of the Jays order, which came to life early against O’s starter Tomoyuki Sugano, taking a 3-0 lead.

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Santander, who hit a comebacker to the mound in his first at-bat, nearly went deep for a second time when he launched a fly ball to the warning track in right-centre in the fifth inning.

For the record, Toronto’s top of the order of Bo Bichette, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., and Santander went a combined 6-for-13, including three for extra bases, in its most productive game of the early season.

Bichette and Guerrero led off the game with back-to-back doubles to open the scoring and, through three innings, the Jays had matched their entire extra-base hit total from their four-game series win at Fenway Park earlier in the week.

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The game, however, ended when Bichette struck out swinging with runners at second and third.

Here are three takeaways from a game the Jays controlled early but couldn’t take advantage of their scoring opportunities:

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TAKE A BOW, BOWDEN

Twice late last season, Bowden Francis watched a no-hit bid get snapped via the long ball.
Saturday at Camden Yards didn’t play out for the right-hander as it did last year — in the ninth inning — but Francis had two out in the fifth inning when Baltimore produced its first hit of the game, a two-run homer by Heston Kjerstad to deep centre that cut the Jays lead to 3-2.

The second hit Francis allowed was also a home run, this time a solo shot by noted Jays-killer Adley Rutschman in the sixth that squared things at 3-3.

The way Francis was dealing, the Jays should have been leading by as many as five runs. But he never made it out of the sixth, surrendering a walk, an infield single when an outstretched Guerrero couldn’t scoop Bichette’s long throw, and a Cedric Mullins two-run double.

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Francis, who clearly deserved better, wound up being tagged for five earned runs in his 5.2 innings, striking out five, while allowing four hits and two walks.

LUKES AND LUCAS

A couple of Jays in their first full major-league seasons are playing sizeable roles in the team’s solid start to the season.

Left-hander Easton Lucas, filling the rotation void left by Max Scherzer’s injury, has acquitted himself well in his first two starts as he prepares for Monday’s scheduled start on Vladdy Day at the Rogers Centre.

Meanwhile, Nathan Lukes has handled the majority of the games in centre field as Daulton Varsho inches closer following off-season shoulder surgery. When he does return, it’s expected the Gold Glover Varsho will reclaim his job, as he should.

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But Lukes made some noise of his own on Saturday. The 30-year-old got on base three times with a pair of walks and a leadoff double in the seventh — his first extra-base hit of the season — and scored two runs.

He also contributed a running, tumbling catch of a ball hit into shallow centre.

DOUBLE TROUBLE

The Jays out-hit the Orioles 10-5, but hit into four double plays and ran into another, stranding six base-runners.

Perhaps the most costly came in the fifth inning when Bichette and Guerrero led off with singles and looked to advance on Santander’s warning-track blast.

However, the umpire ruled that Vladdy had left first base prematurely and called him out. Andres Gimenez then sent a deep fly ball to right field that would easily have scored Bichette from third had there not been two out.

UP NEXT

Jays wrap up their stay in Baltimore with a Sunday scheduled 1:35 p.m. first pitch … RHP Jose Berrios will face the O’s for the second time this season after the righty had a tough outing on opening day in Toronto … The O’s will counter with LHP Cade Povich, who has recorded 12 strikeouts in 10.1 innings.

fzicarelli@postmedia.com

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