Marcus Stroman celebrates after getting the last out of the sixth inning on Wednesday.Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images
Before they took the field to face the Kansas City Royals in what was an eventual 4-2 win, nearly the entire Blue Jays roster donned white "Send Saunders" t-shirts, a reference to the team's campaign to have outfielder Michael Saunders voted into next week's All-Star Game.
While Saunders appreciated his teammates' support, he let his bat do most of the lobbying on Wednesday, launching a solo homer and a game-winning RBI double to lead the Blue Jays to their fifth straight win and a series sweep of the Royals at Rogers Centre.
"The support I've received, not only from the guys in this locker room, but fans all across Canada, words can't explain how grateful I am," Saunders said.
While Edwin Encarnacion, Josh Donaldson and the injured Marco Estrada have already been named to the American League team, Saunders is eligible to be selected on a final fan vote that ends Friday.
To support his cause, the Blue Jays printed t-shirts and launched a social media campaign, and the club is planning a blitz over the next two days in an attempt to push Saunders over the top.
As of Wednesday afternoon, Major League Baseball said Saunders was the leading vote getter among himself, George Springer (Houston), Dustin Pedroia (Boston), Ian Kinsler (Detroit) and Evan Longoria (Tampa Bay) – other finalists vying for the final all-star spot.
"He's the reason we won today," said Marcus Stroman, who played no small part himself in the victory, pitching eight innings while allowing two earned runs on three hits to improve his record to 7-4 on the season.
Saunders took Royals starter Ian Kennedy deep in the fourth inning for his 16th homer, and broke a 2-2 tie with a run-scoring single in the bottom of the eighth.
Stroman, meanwhile, was perfect through five innings until he walked Brett Eibner and gave up a run-scoring triple to Alcides Escobar in the top of sixth inning. Eibner tied the game in the top of the eighth with a solo homer before the Blue Jays bats broke out in the bottom half.
Stroman, who has been unpredictable at times, was as efficient as he's been all season, requiring only 85 pitches to get through his eight innings.
"He's confident now, he looks like the old guy now. Doesn't mean every outing will be the easy outing, but he ought to feel good about that," Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said.
Closer Roberto Osuna tossed a runless ninth for his 17th save.
The win gives the Blue Jays seven in their last nine games. They sit 2 ½ games back of the first-place Baltimore Orioles in the AL East. Looking ahead, the Blue Jays continue their 11-game homestand with a four-game series against the Detroit Tigers starting Thursday before heading into the All-Star break.
Jamie Ross