Blue Jays designated hitter Sean Keys (20) celebrates hitting a three-run homer against the New York Mets on Canada Day at Rogers Centre.Nick Turchiaro/Reuters
Sean Keys has spent all of five days in the major leagues. Over that span the Blue Jays’ rookie has collected his first hit and today his first home run, which helped propel Toronto to a 9-3 victory over the New York Mets.
The 23-year-old’s first four-bagger occurred in his 10th at bat since being called up from AAA-Buffalo. It sailed 349-feet into the home team’s bullpen in left field and gave the club a 5-0 lead in the third inning.
“It was unbelievable,” Keys said. “As I rounded the bases I saw Vladdy [Guerrero Jr.] bringing out the home run jacket. I looked at it before the game and wondered if this would be the day I’d get to wear it for the first time.”
The Blue Jays had 12 hits, including another three-run homer by Myles Straw in a four-run seventh inning. In the previous five games Toronto had scored 12 runs, so the nine in this one qualified as a boatload.
“I thought our at-bats were really good up and down the lineup,” John Schneider, the Blue Jays’ manager, said. “That’s what you want guys to do.”
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After Braydon Fisher pitched the first inning, Spencer Miles threw the next three and allowed just one hit and struck out five while earning his fourth win in five decisions.
Patrick Corbin pitched the game out from there and earned his first save. In five innings he gave up four hits and three runs and struck out five.
Miles, a Rule 5 pick who had only thrown 14 2/3 innings in the minor leagues, came out throwing 99 miles per hour. Players selected in the Rule 5 draft must stick with a team no matter what throughout the season.
“Spencer threw the ball the best I’ve seen him throw,” Schneider said.
Keys got to take part in the post-game dousing from his teammates after he hit a three-run homer in their Canada Day win.Frank Gunn/The Canadian Press
“I’ll take that as a compliment. I felt pretty good today. The ball was electric,” Miles said.
The lopsided triumph came before a packed house and an energized Canada Day crowd. The Jays wore red jerseys and members of the Armed Forces unfurled a giant Canadian flag before the anthems were sung.
Nathan Lukes was among four players who each had two hits. The others were Kazuma Okamoto, Alejandro Kirk and Ernie Clement. Kirk was on base four times – he had two singles and two walks – while Okamoto had two singles, a run batted in and a walk.
Guerrero went 1-for-4 with a double but also made four outstanding plays at first base.
The Blue Jays climbed back to within five games of the .500 mark at 41-46 while New York fell to 36-51. The team travelled to Seattle after the contest where they will play three games against the Mariners over the weekend and three more each after that at San Francisco and San Diego.
Over the first four innings, the Mets had five strikeouts – four of which came while looking. In Toronto’s four-run seventh, reliever Cionel Perez faced six batters without retiring any of them on his own. Okamoto and Clement both were thrown out as they tried to stretch a single into a double.
Keys had hit 21 home runs already this season at the Class-AA and AAA-levels. He is getting a shot at the big leagues because other than Okamoto’s 19 home runs Toronto has had a power shortage.
“He has seen some tough pitching in this series,” Schneider said. “That was a big swing for us and a big swing for Spencer Miles.”
Keys, who bats left-handed, said he blacked out when he hit the home run to the opposite field.
“I hit it and I’m not sure what happened after that,” he said. “Things got a little foggy.”
Neither he nor Miles had ever experienced a Canada Day. Miles said he had never been to Canada before the Blue Jays drafted him in December.
“It was epic,” Miles said. “The pregame stuff was super patriotic and awesome. There were a bunch of emotions and I channelled that.”