TORONTO – Jose Bautista hit two home runs, giving him a major league-leading 30, Ricky Romero pitched 7 2-3 strong innings and Toronto beat Baltimore 8-2 on Tuesday night, the Blue Jays' 11th straight win over the Orioles.
It was the fifth multihomer game of the season for Bautista, who has connected in three straight and leads the AL with 10 in July.
Bautista hit a three-run drive off Kevin Millwood in the first inning and added a two-run shot off Alfredo Simon in the eighth.
Toronto leads the majors with 154 home runs this season, including a major league-high 39 in July. The Blue Jays lead the league with 84 homers at home, including at least one in nine straight games. They have hit 24 in that span.
Toronto shortstop Yunel Escobar went 3 for 5 and is batting .386 (17 for 44) since joining the Blue Jays in a July 14 trade with Atlanta. He has hit safely in all 10 games with Toronto.
Escobar had the defensive highlight of the game, drawing an ovation from the crowd of 16,862 after making a behind-the-back flip to force out Jake Fox at second in the fifth.
The Orioles, baseball's worst team at 31-69, have lost 10 of 12 games since the All-Star break, including the past four.
Romero (8-7) retired 12 of the first 13 batters he faced and didn't allow a run until the eighth. He gave up two runs, walked one and struck out eight.
Toronto wasted no time in jumping on Millwood. Fred Lewis and Escobar led off with consecutive singles and Bautista blasted a 1-0 fastball into the second deck in left.
The Blue Jays added one more on a bases loaded walk to Lyle Overbay in the third, then made it 6-0 on a two-run double by Vernon Wells in the fourth.
Baltimore broke through in the eighth when Julio Lugo and Miguel Tejada singled and Nick Markakis followed with an RBI double. Luke Scott hit a sacrifice fly to right, but Bautista threw out Markakis trying to advance to third, his AL-leading ninth outfield assist.
Adam Jones followed with a single but Scott Downs came on and got Matt Wieters to ground into an inning-ending force play.
Bautista answered in the bottom half with a one-out drive to center, his seventh career multihomer game.
Downs finished with a perfect ninth for the Blue Jays, who have won four of five.
Millwood (2-10) allowed six runs, five earned, and 10 hits in 5 1-3 innings and is winless in four starts since posting his only two victories of the season. He walked four and struck out five.
NOTES: Baltimore 2B Brian Roberts, activated off the 60-day DL last week, got the day off but is expected to play Wednesday. ... Orioles manager Juan Samuel said the team would discuss whether RHP Brian Bergesen, who has lost seven straight decisions, would keep his spot in the rotation. ... Baltimore INF Ty Wigginton served the second and final game of his suspension for making contact with umpire Gary Darling during an argument last Thursday.
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