Braves hang on for 8-7 win in homerfest at Toronto

They were out-homered 5-2. Even that didn’t matter. They still won.

Eighth-inning home runs by Jonny Gomes and Freddie Freeman gave the Braves a three-run lead, and they hung on for a rollicking 8-7 series-opening win at Rogers Centre, where balls sailed like it was the pre-humidor era at Coors Field.

“The last couple of games have been tough, we haven’t been hitting the ball very well,” Freeman said after the Braves snapped a two-game skid. “It’s nice to come out and get some hits tonight and put some runs on the board and definitely out-slug them a little bit.”

Nick Markakis had four hits (and a walk) and six Braves drove in at least one run — six of eight RBIs came with two outs — as they overcame one of Teheran’s worst outings, the right-hander giving up seven hits, five runs, two walks and a hit batter in five innings.

“Julio just left some balls over the plate,” said manager Fredi Gonzalez, whose Braves snapped a two-game skid. “I was watching the replays of the home runs; he’s better than that. He’ll make his command better than that. But I’m proud of our club offensively, we were able to score some runs moving the line, and then Jonny and Freeman came up with some big home runs.”

Josh Donaldson and Russell Martin each had two homers for the Blue Jays, with Donaldson taking Teheran deep twice. But the Gomes homer gave the Braves a lead they would finally not relinquish, although they needed every bit of the insurance provided by Freeman’s subsequent blast.

“I’ve been watching (Gomes) do that for years now,” Markakis said. “He’s pretty damn good at it. It takes a lot of focus to come in and pinch-hit. It was kind of a no-brainer matchup right there, and he put a good swing on it.”

Gomes’ pinch-hit homer off Brett Cecil to start the eighth snapped a 5-5 tie and made him 6-for-9 with two homers and four walks against the left-hander, and Freeman’s two-out, two-run drive off Cecil pushed the lead to a seemingly safe 8-5.

But Jim Johnson gave up a leadoff homer to Martin to start the Blue Jays’ eighth, and the previously un-scored upon Johnson gave up two more ground-ball singles before recording his first out. After a sacrifice bunt there were two Blue Jays in scoring position, and they pulled to within a run on a fielder’s choice grounder before Johnson got out of the inning clinging to a one-run lead.

Jason Grilli pitched a perfect ninth with one strikeout for his fifth save in the first 10 games. Veterans signed this winter — Gomes, Markakis, Grilli — all made major contributions to the win, none more than Gomes with his second homer in 16 at-bats for the season and 10th career pinch homer (he’s the the active major league leader in that category).

“You’ve got this weapon sitting in the dugout, Jonny Gomes, who traditionally wears out left-handed pitchers,” Gonzalez said. “And you get an opportunity to get the matchup that I want in that situation, and we use it. We took advantage of it. And good for Jonny Gomes, he sits around for eight innings at that time, but he’s ready to go, he’s prepared.”

The Braves trailed 4-2 before scoring three runs in the fifth inning on two-out extra-base hits by Andrelton Simmons and Jace Peterson. Simmons tied the score with a two-run, opposite-field double deep to the right-center gap that chased starter Drew Hutchison, and Peterson followed with a triple to nearly the same place to bring in Simmons for a 5-4 lead.

It was the first extra-base hit and first RBI for Peterson, a rookie who had been 5-for-26 with seven strikeouts, including strikeouts in both of his plate appearances against Hutchison. He was the first batter to face reliever Roberto Osuna, and pulled a two-strike fastball deep to the gap to give the Braves their first lead since a 3-2 win Monday against the Marlins.

“Petey came back after a couple of rough first at-bats, and he clutched up huge,” Freeman said. “Simmons with the huge two-out RBIs. That’s the name of the game, get the big hits, and we definitely did today.”

The Braves had a National League-best 6-1 record before losing consecutive games to the Marlins Tuesday and Wednesday, falling behind 3-0 in the first inning Tuesday and 2-0 in the third inning in the series finale.

Following a day off Thursday, they fell behind right away Friday when Devon Travis led off the Blue Jays’ first inning with a homer on Teheran’s third pitch, a 1-1 fastball. After Eric Young Jr. hit a game-tying single in the second inning with two outs and an 0-2 count, the Blue Jays moved right back into the lead on Martin’s homer in the bottom of the inning, on an 0-1 fastball.

The Braves answered again in the third with a run on three singles, with A.J. Pierzynski’s one-out hit tying the score, 2-2. Pierzynski advanced to second base when the Blue Jays misplayed a rundown, but with two runners in scoring position and one out, the Braves stranded them when Simmons grounded out and Peterson struck out.

Donaldson’s first homer of the night was a two-run shot in the third on yet another Teheran fastball. He put the Blue Jays ahead 4-2, and Hutchison retired the Braves in order in the fourth, which would be the only clean inning by either starting pitcher.

After Teheran worked out of a two-on, no-outs jam in the fourth, the Braves quieted the crowd with their three-run fifth inning. Markakis led off with a single and Chris Johnson drew a one-out walk. One out later, Simmons’ double tied the score, and the Blue Jays would not lead again.

The four home runs off Teheran matched the total he allowed in his past 11 starts before Friday, and in his past 10 starts he had a 2.17 ERA and had allowed more than two runs just once. He said a twinge he felt in his right knee during his previous start had no effect on him Friday, and that it was just a series of bad pitches.

“Just mistakes,” he said. “I’m just happy to know I battled and kept my team in the game, and we won the game in the end. It’s good when you know your team is supporting you, even when it’s not your night. They’re supporting you, trying to tie the game or just come back. That (giving up runs after they fought back) was the part that made me a little upset.”

The right-hander gave up more than two home runs just one other time, when he allowed three solo homers in a May 3 loss to the Giants last season. The three homers by the Giants accounted for all the runs and all but one of the hits Teheran allowed in seven innings that day.