Toronto reigns in AL East: Jays end 22-year title drought

BALTIMORE – Champagne and beer was spraying everywhere. Cigars were lit, and laughter filled the clubhouse.

It had been 22 years since the Toronto Blue Jays won the AL East, and they celebrated the occasion with the appropriate fanfare.

Wearing shirts that read “The East Is Ours,” the Blue Jays yelled and screamed with delight in an appropriate conclusion to their unstoppable, two-month run.

With a 15-2 victory over the Baltimore Orioles on Wednesday in the opener of a doubleheader, Toronto eliminated the New York Yankees from the division race and claimed its first title since 1993. The suspense ended quickly as the Blue Jays built a 4-0 lead in the fourth inning before adding four unearned runs in the fifth.

“It’s the ultimate right now,” manager John Gibbons said. “To be honest, we think we have more ahead of us. It was a big hurdle to get over. It’s been so damn long. But I am proud of our guys from Day One. They just compete. That all we ask. That’s what happens when you have a lot of talent and they get after it every night.”

The Blue Jays waited so long for this, there were two celebrations. After the first game, the players whooped and hollered and hugged around the mound. Because there was another game to be played, the alcohol and cigars were put off until after the nightcap, which the Orioles won 8-1 against Toronto’s reserves.

In the opener, Marcus Stroman (4-0) allowed one run and five hits with eight strikeouts in his fourth start since returning from left knee surgery.

Jose Bautista hit his 40th home run, Edwin Encarnacion delivered No. 37 and Justin Smoak also connected for Toronto. Ryan Goins had a career-high five hits to help the Blue Jays win their sixth straight.

Toronto was fourth in the AL East on the morning of July 29 with a 50-51 record, eight games behind the Yankees. But boosted by the acquisitions of David Price, Troy Tulowitzki, Ben Revere, LaTroy Hawkins and Mark Lowe, the Blue Jays won 42 of their next 56 games, outscoring opponents 342-200. They ended the major leagues’ longest playoff drought on Sept. 26 when they clinched no worse than a wild-card berth.

“We played good baseball,” a drenched Price said. “I’ve done my part and so has everybody else on this team. It’s not one person, it’s not one trade. It’s everybody with one goal in sight.”