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Vladimir Guerrero Jr. went 3-for-3 with a couple of walks, while Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Myles Straw each had a pair of hits in the 6-1 victory. Right-hander Chris Bassitt limited the Orioles to one run across five strong innings, while five relievers combined to toss four scoreless.

“It has been really cool to have a group of guys just pulling for one another and when it’s their time, they’re ready for it,” Jays manager John Schneider said. “It was an awesome game from Myles. (Kiner-Falefa) I think is re-energized a bit coming back here and he’s just a baseball player, does the dirty things and just helps you win. It has been the story of our season where it can be anyone, any night.”

With the victory, the Jays moved one game up on the Detroit Tigers for the best record in the AL. The Tigers lost 8-2 to the Miami Marlins on Friday night, but more noteworthy was that ace starter Tarik Skubal left in the fourth inning because of left-side tightness.

The New York Yankees also defeated the Boston Red Sox 4-1, which means the Jays maintained a three-game lead over the second-place Yankees, while extending their lead over the Red Sox to 4 1/2 games.

The early hook

Bassitt departed after five innings despite having allowed just one run on two hits and a walk while striking out six. He left as the top of the Orioles batting order was due up for the third time. Normally that would mean the Jays lifted him for strategic purposes, but he also appeared to be dealing with some kind of issue with his back. Bassitt threw 75 pitches, his lowest total since not making it out of the fifth inning during an Aug. 9 outing against the Los Angeles Dodgers. The only run he allowed came in the third after Samuel Basallo doubled and later scored on an RBI single by Jackson Holliday.

“It’s that time of the year, things don’t feel great,” said Bassitt, who didn’t get into specifics. “It’s making sure that we’re healthiest going forward and, honestly, that we’re healthy through October. We have a long way to go. We know we have a long way to go. So, it’s just how can be smart, and obviously Schneids has the final say on all those things.”

The fumble

The Jays caught a huge break in the bottom of the fifth, which resulted in their first run. Davis Schneider drew a two-out walk and Guerrero followed by sending a sharp liner into right-centre field. Orioles outfielder Colton Cowser went over to make a play, but the ball bounced off his glove and rolled to the wall. That allowed Schneider to score all the way from first, while Guerrero moved up to second. Guerrero was awarded a single and Cowser was charged with the error leading to an unearned run for Orioles starter Trevor Rogers, who left after five innings with left toe discomfort.

Started from the bottom

The Jays got another two-out rally stared in the bottom of the sixth. Kiner-Falefa singled on a ground ball to third base and moved up on an errant throw to first. Straw then doubled to left and Kiner-Falefa easily scored to give the Jays a 2-1 lead they would not relinquish. The Jays added another insurance run in the seventh on a two-out RBI single by Ernie Clement. Daulton Varsho then blew the game wide open in the eighth with a two-run double, which scored Straw and George Springer.

“It starts with just knowing we’ve been there, we’ve done it,” Straw said, referencing the number of comeback wins this season. “We have the right guys in the lineup. And if it’s not the right guy in the lineup, we have the right guy on the bench to fill in. The whole roster as it stands is really good and we’re all prepared to do what we have to do.”