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Lyle Overbay doubled home three runs in the fourth and Jesse Litsch threw five and two-third solid innings as the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Texas Rangers, 8-5, on Friday night in Arlington.

The win brought the Jays back to .500 on the season at 5-5 and broke off a three-game losing streak.

Vernon Wells and Aaron Hill greet Matt Stairs after the three scored on a base-clearing double by Lyle Overbay on Friday night that helped the Blue Jays beat the Texas Rangers.
(Tim Sharp/Associated Press)

Texas dropped to 5-5.

Litsch (2-0) gave up two runs on six hits in his second strong start of the season. He had to pitch out of major trouble once, getting out of a bases loaded jam in the fourth by inducing Ben Broussard to ground out.

Three other hurlers took the game into the ninth before lefthander Scott Downs came on to get two outs for his first save of the year.

Vincente Padilla (1-1) was clean through three innings before allowing four in the fourth as Toronto's attack found its legs.

In that inning, consecutive singles by David Eckstein and Aaron Hill put runners on first and second, and after an out Vernon Wells doubled off the glove of Frank Catalonatto in left to score one.

Matt Stairs walked to load the bases, bringing Overbay up for a drive down the line that was just inside the first base bag that cleaned the sacks and put Toronto up 4-1.

Rangers came back in the fifth to get one off Litsch, whose only mistake to that point had been a solo home run by Blalock in the second inning. Josh Hamilton's sacrifice fly brought home Ian Kinsler, who had opened the fifth with a double, and it was 4-2.

Jays got that one back in the top of the sixth with some heads-up base running.

With two outs, Zaun on third and Buck Coats at first, Toronto went for a double steal. It worked, and Zaun scored to make it 5-2.

Toronto's offence blew it open in the seventh with three more.

Alex Rios walked, stole second, went to third on a throwing error by catcher Gerald Laird and scored on an infield single by Wells. One out later there were two on and Zaun singled home Wells to make it 7-2.

Marco Scutaro then singled home Matt Stairs for the Jays' final run of the night.

A home run by Hamilton in the bottom of the seventh off reliever Brian Wolfe made it 8-4, and one in the ninth off Jason Frasor brought the final to 8-5.

"The last three games, we haven't been as aggressive as we had been the first week," said Wells, who went three-for-five. "Once we got on base, we wanted to make things happen.

"We're not going to hit home runs all the time. Sometimes you have to manufacture runs."

Coats sent out

After the game, Toronto optioned outfield Coats back to the minors, bringing up infielder Joe Inglett from AAA Syracuse.

Coats had started the Friday night game, going one-for-three.

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