TORONTO – Alex Presley hit his first career home run, Andrew McCutchen added a solo shot, and the Pittsburgh Pirates held on to beat the Toronto Blue Jays 7-6 on Tuesday night, earning their first interleague road win in more than two years.
Kevin Correia (10-6) allowed four runs and five hits in six innings for the Pirates, who have won five of six. Correia is 8-2 with an 2.69 ERA in 10 road starts this season. He is the first Pittsburgh pitcher since Bob Walk in 1993 to win 10 games before the All-Star break.
Joel Hanrahan worked the ninth for his 23rd save in 23 opportunities as the Pirates, who came in having lost 13 straight interleague road games, beat an AL opponent away from home for the first time since June 17, 2009, at Minnesota. Pittsburgh was outscored 81-30 in that span.
The Los Angeles Dodgers lost a major league-record 15 consecutive interleague road games between June 14, 2005, and June 28, 2006.
Toronto's Jose Bautista hit his 24th home run, a two-run drive to left in the fourth, keeping him tied with Yankees slugger Mark Teixeira for the major league lead. After playing 70 games in right field and one at DH, Bautista made his first start of the season at third base.
Edwin Encarnacion hit a pair of solo homers, the seventh multihomer game of his career, and Corey Patterson also connected for the Blue Jays, who have lost six of nine.
Presley, promoted from Triple-A on Monday, gave the Pirates a 2-0 lead when he homered into the right field bullpen in the third inning.
Encarnacion cut Toronto's deficit in half when he hit his fourth homer in the bottom half.
The Pirates chased Blue Jays left-hander Jo-Jo Reyes with a four-run fourth. Matt Diaz drove in a run with a triple that bounced over the head of two outfielders, and Presley and Neil Walker each had RBI singles.
Bautista made it 6-3 with his homer in the bottom half and then drove in a run with an groundout in the sixth.
McCutchen gave Pittsburgh a 7-4 lead when he homered to left in the seventh, his 11th, but Pittsburgh's bullpen struggled to hold the lead.
Patterson and Encarnacion hit back-to-back homers off Tony Watson in the bottom half, and the Blue Jays loaded the bases against Chris Resop on a walk to J.P. Arencibia, a double by Yunel Escobar and an intentional walk to Bautista.
Jose Veras came on and got Adam Lind to line into an inning-ending double play, with former Blue Jays first baseman Lyle Overbay catching Lind's smash and running to the bag to double off Bautista.
Veras pitched a perfect eighth before turning it over to Hanrahan.
Reyes (3-7) lost his second straight start, allowing a season-high six runs and nine hits in 3 2-3 innings. He walked one and struck out five.
NOTES: The Pirates placed OF Jose Tabata (strained left quad) on the 15-day DL, retroactive to June 27, and recalled INF Josh Harrison from Triple-A Indianapolis. ... Presley made his season debut, batting leadoff. He is the 42nd player Pittsburgh has used this season, tied with the Dodgers for most in the majors. ... Toronto recalled LHP Brett Cecil from Triple-A Las Vegas and optioned RHP Zach Stewart to Double-A New Hampshire. Cecil will start against Philadelphia on Thursday. ... Blue Jays RHP Carlos Villanueva will have his next start pushed back to July 2 to limit his innings. Villanueva will make two more starts before the All-Star break. ... Former Blue Jays OF Joe Carter threw out the first pitch.
Receive your weekly recap of all the happenings around the world of sports.