Mookie Betts Drives In 8 As Boston Routs Blue Jays, 15-1; Marcell Ozuna's Two Homers Power Marlins

Players of the Day for Sunday, July 2, 2017

Betts: 8 RBI

American League

On a day which saw a good number of one-side games, Boston's 15-1 trouncing of Toronto was the most uneven.

After scoring one run in each of the first two innings, the Red Sox tacked on three in the fourth, and two more in the sixth before exploding for eight runs in the seventh. Boston banged out 21 hits to Toronto's five, swamping Jays' starter Joe Biagini (2-7) for 10 hits and seven runs in 5 1/3 innings.

Much of the carnage was created by leadoff hitter Mookie Betts, who drove in eight runs total. Betts singled in a lone run in the second inning, then hit homers in consecutive at-bats in the fourth and sixth, the first a three-run bomb, the second with one aboard.

In the seventh, Betts singled in two more as the Red Sox sent 11 men to the plate.

Betts's homers were his 14th and 15th, helping up his RBI total to 51 on the year. He joins Nelson Cruz of Seattle as the only active players to have two eight-RBI games. Betts drove in eight last season against the Diamondbacks.

The win put Boston three games up on the Yankees in the AL East, as Houston thumped the Baby Bombers, 8-1. Winners of four straight, the Red Sox concluded their series in Toronto with a three-game sweep and head to Texas for three games with the Rangers, starting Monday.

National League

Ozuna: 2 HR, 4 RBI

Milwaukee continues to hold first place in the NL Central, but only by two games over the Cubs after the Marlins avoided being swept with a 10-3 win at the Brewers' home, Miller Park.

The Brewers took the three-game series, 2-1, but the Marlins exacted some revenge in the finale as Marcell Ozuna socked a pair of home runs and added a single for a 3-for-6 game with four RBI.

Ozuna belted a three-run homer in the third inning and added a solo shot in the eighth, giving him 22 on the year with 59 RBI, tied for seventh in the league with Milwaukee's Travis Shaw and Cincinnati's Joey Votto. Arizona's Paul Goldschmidt and Jake Lamb lead with 66 and 65, respectively.

Having a career year with a .316 batting average, Ozuna needs one more home run to match his previous season-high. He hit 23 in both 2014 and 2016.

Landed in fourth place in the NL East, Miami still trails Washington by 11 games. The Marlins continue their road trip with four games in St. Louis, beginning Monday. Also on Monday, Milwaukee welcomes in the Baltimore Orioles for a three-game set.