Second baseman Dylan Moore's three-run homer in the top of the 10th inning Wednesday night snapped a 6-6 tie and the Seattle Mariners held on for a 9-7 win over the Toronto Blue Jays in the longest game of the season at Sahlen Field.
By winning the 4-hour, 12-minute affair, the Mariners improved to 42-39 overall and 9-1 in extra-inning games. The Blue Jays (41-37) fell to 4-2 on their homestand and 2-5 in extras. The teams have split the first two games of their series.
Moore clubbed his seventh home run of the season deep into the left-field screen with two men on base to give Seattle the victory. It made a winner of reliever Kendell Graveman (2-0), the lone member of the Mariners who has played for the Buffalo Bisons.
Murphy played three years at UB and was MAC Player of the Year in 2011 after batting .384 with 10 homers and 44 RBIs in 52 games. He was a third-round pick by the Colorado Rockies out of UB in 2012.
Graveman was a former Toronto draft pick who played briefly for the Herd in 2014 and was traded following that season to Oakland as part of the Blue Jays' big deal for future MVP Josh Donaldson.
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Toronto got a run back in the bottom of the 10th on Cavan Biggio's RBI double but Drew Steckenrider retired the next three hitters to earn his second save.
The game was a back-and-forth affair. Seattle scored four in the third to take a 4-1 lead but the Blue Jays eventually got even in the fourth at 4-4 on back-to-back doubles by Riley Adams and Marcus Semien.
Seattle went back in front, 6-4, in the fifth on Mitch Haniger's two-run homer but the Jays scratched out a run in the fifth and tied the game on Lourdes Gurriel's first-pitch drive to Oak Street leading off the bottom of the eighth.
The Blue Jays were just 5 for 20 in the game with runners in scoring position and left 10 men on base. Nos. 3-4 hitters Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Teoscar Hernandez combined to go 0 for 9 and Guerrero struck out three times.
"That happens. Our offense has been so good. Of course, we could have had more but you have to give them credit too for making big pitches when they had to," said manager Charlie Montoyo. "We scored enough to make it a game. It just wasn't enough there at the end."
Gurriel had the homer, a double and a sacrifice fly while hitting out of the No. 8 spot. He's batting .355 in his last nine games after an 0-for-15 drought in the four games prior to that.
"If we get him going too, that's great," Montoyo said. "Everyone in our offense is doing great. Hopefully we'll keep that going because that's our strength."
Close games continue to haunt the Jays. They're just 12-22 when the margin is two runs or less -- and 29-15 when its three runs or more.
Cimber's arrival is boon for Bisons
Sidearmer Adam Cimber was added to the Blue Jays' roster on Wednesday after being acquired in Tuesday's trade with the Miami Marlins, and his arrival meant a boon for the Buffalo Bisons' bullpen.
To make room for Cimber and starter Steven Matz, coming off the Covid Injured List, the Blue Jays sent relievers Joel Payamps and Anthony Castro to the Herd, which is hosting Lehigh Valley this week in Trenton, N.J.
Payamps is 0-2 with a 2.70 ERA in 22 games for the Blue Jays this season but has pitched only once in the last 13 days due to back trouble. Castro is 1-2, 4.50.
Toronto also designated reliever Jeremy Beasley for assignment, meaning he could be headed back to Trenton if he clears waivers and accepts assignment.
Top prospect injured
Double-A New Hampshire catcher Gabriel Moreno, who has been the hottest hitter in the organization and seemed poised to get a promotion to Triple-A soon, is going to be out for an extended period after getting hit by a pitch over the weekend.
"Unfortunately, the worst of luck," General Manager Ross Atkins said prior to Wednesday's game. "Just a very unfortunate hit by pitch that caught him in the wrong spot of his thumb has caused a very minor fracture that potentially involves also a minor subluxation."
Atkins said he didn't know if Moreno will require surgery but expects he will be out for weeks. Moreno, 21, was hitting .373 with eight home runs in 32 games for New Hampshire.
Catching has become a sudden area of depth for the Blue Jays. Reese McGuire is hitting .318 in his last 33 games, while both Danny Jansen and Alejandro Kirk are in Trenton on rehab assignments.
"It's a good problem to have and we're not going to carry three catchers," said manager Charlie Montoyo. "We'll see what happens."
Herd bats erupt again
The Bisons won Wednesday's game, 10-9, as Christian Colon and Logan Warmouth belted three-run homers. Buffalo improved to 29-19 by winning for the 12th time in 14 games. The Herd hit double figures for the second straight night after rolling in Tuesday's series opener, 12-2.
Onward
The Blue Jays and Mariners conclude their series with a Canada Day matinee Thursday afternoon at 1:07. In a battle of lefties Hyun Jin Ryu (7-4) starts for Toronto and Yusei Kikuchi (5-3) goes for Seattle.
