TORONTO — Jose Bautista hit two home runs, Brandon Morrow pitched seven innings and the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Kansas City Royals 8-1 Monday night.
Travis Snider also homered to help the Blue Jays snap a three-game losing streak and win for the 18th time in 22 home games against Kansas City.
Bautista hit a three-run drive off the facing of the third deck in left in the fifth, then added a two-run drive to left in the seventh, the third multihomer game of his career. His five RBIs matched a career high.
Attendance was 10,314, the smallest crowd in the 22-year history of Rogers Centre and breaking the mark set last Wednesday, when Toronto drew 10,610 for a game against the Chicago White Sox.
Morrow (1-1) allowed one run and three hits, lowering his ERA from 12.00 to 7.31. He walked two and struck out eight.
Kansas City right-hander Brian Bannister (0-1) allowed six runs and seven hits in 5 1/3 innings, raising his ERA from 2.19 to 4.58. He walked four and struck out six.
The right-hander held the Royals without a hit through the first five innings but lost his shutout bid in the sixth. Alex Gordon drew a leadoff walk, took second on a grounder and went to third when ninth hitter Yuniesky Betancourt lined a single through the left side. David DeJesus followed with an RBI single to right.
Shawn Camp worked the eighth and Casey Janssen pitched the ninth for Toronto.
Toronto opened the scoring on an odd play in the third. One out after Mike McCoy singled and stole second, Alex Gonzalez struck out on a wild pitch that bounced away from catcher Brayan Pena. Rather than allowing the ball to roll into the first-base dugout, which would have kept McCoy at third, Pena threw to first, and Gonzalez was safe when Pena's high toss pulled Billy Butler off the bag. McCoy never broke stride and scored without a throw.
Snider made it 2-0 with a leadoff homer to right in the fourth before Bautista's three-run shot in the fourth made it 5-0.
Gonzalez hit an RBI double in the sixth and Bautista capped his night by homering again in the seventh.
Toronto first baseman Lyle Overbay, who came in batting .080, went 2 for 2 with two walks and scored twice, raising his average to .115. He also reached on a catcher's interference call.
Notes
Royals OF Scott Podsednik, who leads the AL with a .457 average, went home to Kansas City to deal with a family emergency and should rejoin the team Tuesday, manager Trey Hillman said. … Toronto LHP Brian Tallet (sore forearm) will have his next start pushed back three days. Tallet had been set to pitch Friday at Tampa Bay but will not work until Monday at home to Boston. … McCoy's three hits were a career high. … Blue Jays 3B Edwin Encarnacion (sore right arm) missed his fifth straight game.