One that got away: Toronto scores four in ninth to win 8-5

Starting on Aug. 2, right-hander Mychal Givens went 15 straight games without allowing a homer. Now he has yielded a longball in back-to-back games in the ninth inning, and a home run allowed tonight helped beat the Orioles.

Justin Smoak homered onto the flag court to lead off the ninth as Toronto beat the Orioles 8-4 with four runs in the ninth. It's the opener of a three-game series and the final homestand of this year.

Cavan Biggio's two-run triple in the ninth made it 7-4. That hit gave Biggio the cycle as he singled, double, tripled and homered. It was just the third cycle in Toronto team history and first since Jeff Frye on Aug. 17, 2001.

It also led to O's center fielder Mason Williams leaving the game after a violent collision with the center field wall trying to chase that ball down.

On a night the O's saw some balls fall in for hits on their outfielders, they made a baserunning mistake or two and fell behind in the third. It looked like they still might win because had Trey Mancini on their side again. And they had the lead with six outs to go.

Mancini drove in all four Baltimore runs and they took a 4-3 lead on his single in the seventh that broke a 3-3 tie. Chance Sisco led off the inning and doubled off Justin Shafer. After a walk and popout, Mancini delivered the clutch hit for the lead.

Mancini tied his season-high with four RBIs, done for the second time, and this was his 22nd multi-RBI game to tie Renato Núñez for the club lead. Mancini has 11 RBIs over his past five games and 88 for the season.

But that lead didn't hold. In the Toronto eighth against right-hander Shawn Armstrong, Biggio doubled, stole third easily and scored the tying run on Lourdes Gurriel Jr.'s sac fly.

The Orioles scored first tonight when Mancini hit a two-run homer to right-center field. He homered once again in that direction. It scored Dwight Smith Jr., who walked ahead of him and was No. 34. Mancini drilled it out on the eighth pitch of the at-bat from opener Ryan Tepera. It was his fourth homer in five games and 34 is 10 more than his previous career-best.

Toronto's Randal Grichuk hit a fly ball onto the flag court in right to make it 2-1 in the second. He hit No. 29 on a 1-2 slider from O's starting pitcher Chandler Shepherd.

An inning later, Bo Bichette walked and Biggio hit a two-run homer as Toronto led 3-2. He hit No. 14 on a first-pitch fastball at 91 mph. Making his first career start, Shepherd did not get a decision, allowing three runs over four innings on 68 pitches.

The Orioles got even at 3-3 in the last of the fifth. Sisco walked to start the inning and moved up on a Jonathan Villar bunt single. Then both runners moved up on a sac bunt by Smith. Mancini's sac fly to center scored Sisco to give him a three-RBI night and tie this game.

Villar's 22nd homer in the ninth accounted for the game's final 8-5 margin.

With the loss, the Orioles (49-102) are 4-12 this month, 14-35 in series-opening games, 21-47 against the American League East and 7-7 versus Toronto.

The Blue Jays (60-91) are 5-2 since they snapped a season-long seven-game losing streak. They just took two of three at home against Boston and New York and get the jump in this series tonight.