TORONTO -- Elvis Luciano became the youngest pitcher in Blue Jays history when he took the mound during the seventh inning of Sunday afternoon's 11-inning, 4-3 loss to the Tigers. Luciano tossed 1 1/3 scoreless innings, while surrendering a double to Niko Goodrum and issuing an intentional walk. At 19

TORONTO -- Elvis Luciano became the youngest pitcher in Blue Jays history when he took the mound during the seventh inning of Sunday afternoon's 11-inning, 4-3 loss to the Tigers.

Luciano tossed 1 1/3 scoreless innings, while surrendering a double to Niko Goodrum and issuing an intentional walk. At 19 years and 44 days, Luciano is the first player born in the 2000s to appear in a Major League game, and he's second only to Brian Miller (at 18 years, 218 days in 1978) as the youngest player in franchise history.

The Dominican native entered in the seventh, and got Nicholas Castellanos to fly out and end the threat. In the following inning, the biggest highlight of all came when Miguel Cabrera stepped into the box and Luciano eventually got him to fly out to left.

"That was wild right there," Luciano said, through an interpreter after the game. "When I was 12 years old, Cabrera was my favorite player. I used to be an infielder, and when I saw him, when I knew I was going to face him; that was my proudest moment of the entire day."

The Blue Jays acquired Luciano from Kansas City during the December Rule 5 Draft at the annual Winter Meetings in Las Vegas. He won a spot on the 25-man roster during Spring Training and he has to remain there -- barring injury -- all season, or be offered back to the Royals for $500,000.

Richard goes down

Blue Jays left-hander Clayton Richard, who will miss at least the next two weeks because of a stress reaction in his right knee, was placed on the 10-day injured list on Monday.

Right-hander Sean Reid-Foley was recalled from Triple-A Buffalo in time to make Monday's start against the Orioles, which originally belonged to Richard. Reid-Foley had yet to make an appearance in a game, awaiting the start of the Minor League season, but spent the spring competing for a job with the Blue Jays.

Richard is in a no-throw situation for approximately the next two weeks, and will then be re-evaluated at that time.

"It hurts when he lands, so we have to be careful with that," Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo said.

The top four-fifths of the Blue Jays' rotation got off to an incredible start this season, with a combined 24 scoreless innings over the first four games. Even with Trent Thornton's record-setting debut on Sunday, there is a lot more uncertainty in the final two spots. Clay Buchholz continues to get stretched out in the Minors after signing late in camp, and left-hander Ryan Borucki will need to miss at least one more outing because of elbow soreness, and now Richard goes down as well.

Jansen in the DH spot

Montoyo continues to prove that he's not afraid to take some risks. The latest example came in the series finale against Detroit, when Danny Jansen was inserted into the leadoff spot of the lineup as a designated hitter.

The Blue Jays' manager knew he wanted to give Jansen a break behind the plate, but he still wanted his bat in the lineup. That's why Montoyo settled on the DH spot, even if he knows there's a downside to this strategy, which became apparent in the eighth inning when Rowdy Tellez pinch-hit for catcher Luke Maile.

Montoyo's move paid off when Tellez hit a three-run homer, but it also left the Blue Jays without a DH for the rest of the game because Jansen had to move back behind the plate. Jansen went 1-for-5 on the day.

"He matches up better than anybody on this team, that's why we're doing that," Montoyo said earlier in the day when explaining the move. "Of course, when we're doing that, I'm taking the risk of a catcher getting hurt, and I'd have to manage a National League team. Hopefully nobody get hurts and everything is fine."

Galvis sits, then plays

Freddy Galvis was held out of the Blue Jays' starting lineup because of tightness in his lower back. For a couple of hours, it looked like Galvis might miss his first big league game since 2016, but the veteran infielder still found a way to enter late as a pinch-hitter.

Galvis appeared in 162 games during each of the last two seasons with the Padres and Phillies. Utility infielder Richard Urena replaced Galvis in the starting lineup approximately 20 minutes prior to first pitch, but Montoyo said after the game he did not believe it would be a serious issue.

"He said he couldn't go," Montoyo said. "Of course he has his streak going. So I said, 'Well get loose, I'll give you time.' And he said 'No, I just won't be able to go.' So for Freddy to say that, you know he couldn't go. Then around the third inning our trainer said, 'He got loose and he feels pretty good, so he should be able to pinch-hit or play.'"

Quotable

"The one thing I know is that he's not going to be scared. I don't know how he's like that, because I would be, but he's not. That's a plus. If you see him out there and he's wild or something, it's not because he's scared or something, it's because he's just a kid from Rookie ball. But you're going to see him, and we've got to find out." -- Montoyo, on Luciano.</s>Blue Jays RHP Luciano is first big leaguer born this century

TORONTO (AP) — While Major League Baseball no longer has a single player who was active during the previous century, it now has its first player born in this one.

Blue Jays right-hander Elvis Luciano became the youngest pitcher in Toronto history when he debuted Sunday against the Detroit Tigers. Luciano, who turned 19 on Feb. 15, allowed one hit in 1 1/3 scoreless innings.

"I feel very good about it and very proud of myself," Luciano said through a translator. "I wasn't nervous at all. I was anxious because I really wanted to do the best I could for the team."

Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo was impressed with Luciano's performance, especially a fastball that reached 96 mph.

"Just to pitch in that moment, in that situation, that shows you a lot," Montoyo said after his team lost 4-3 in 11 innings. "For sure he's not nervous. He's got the stuff to compete in the big leagues."

Pitching with runners at the corners and two outs in the seventh, Luciano retired the first batter he faced, Nicholas Castellanos, on a fly to center.

"Good fastball," Castellanos said. "He came right at me — he wasn't shy. He did his job and got me out. Hopefully if he has a 20-year major league career, I can say that I was the first guy he ever got out."

Luciano got slugger Miguel Cabrera on a fly ball to the wall in left field for his first out of the eighth.

"That was a 'wow' right there," Luciano said. "When I was 12 years old, Cabrera was my favorite player. I used to be an infielder and when I saw him, when I knew that I was going to face him, that was the proudest moment of the entire day for me."

Niko Goodrum's one-out double was the only hit off Luciano.

"I was just trying to get a heater," Goodrum said. "He has a good arm."

The Blue Jays got Luciano from Kansas City in the Rule 5 draft at the winter meetings last December. He hadn't pitched above rookie ball in two minor league seasons before this year.

Adrian Beltre and Bartolo Colon were the final two big leaguers who were active in the last century, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

Brian Milner is the youngest player in Blue Jays history. The catcher was 18 years and 218 days old when he debuted with Toronto against Cleveland in June 1978.</s>Not much was expected from the Toronto Blue Jays this season, and you could see evidence of that from the smallish crowds at the Rogers Centre as the club broke from spring and hosted the Detroit Tigers in a four-game series.

A non-sellout crowd of 45,048 was announced on Thursday, and attendance fell off after that to under 20,000 for each of the following three games.

And the games were mostly sleepy affairs as pitchers dominated and the hitters looked like they were still in hibernation.

On Thursday, the Jays lost the opener 2-0 in 10 innings before shutting out the Tigers 6-0 and 3-0 and then falling 4-3 in 11 innings on Sunday.

Despite the split, something special was going on inside the clubhouse and with the tone being set by new manager Charlie Montoyo, who was making his major-league debut as skipper.

Montoyo, who has an engaging personality and smile, has created a hard-working, but collegial atmosphere among the players. He doesn't like to use the world "rebuilding" when discussing the Blue Jays. It takes away from the winning feeling he wants to instill in them.

And the Blue Jays starting pitchers are taking the team approach in a new direction. Before the game on Friday, Marcus Stroman, Aaron Sanchez, Clayton Richard and Trent Thornton joined Matt Shoemaker in the bullpen as he warmed up. "We want to set that precedent," Shoemaker said. "You're facing all of us."

Montoyo, who is old school, learned to accept analytics as part of the game when he was in the Tampa system, and he has brought some of that thinking north to Toronto.

The Blue Jays will bunt. The Blue Jays will be aggressive on the basepaths. The batting order will be adjusted depending on pitching matchups. And you will see all kinds of defensive alignments depending on opposing hitters' tendencies.

You could see the love the players had for Montoyo when they gave him a huge beer shower to celebrate his first major-league victory on Saturday. Montoyo got 300 to 400 texts congratulating him for his first big-league win, and he said he would try to reply to each one because he doesn't want any of his friends to think he has gone big league on them.

And for a while, it looked as if the Blue Jays were going to steal the series from the Tigers on Sunday, until some bad baserunning caught up to them.

A split was probably better than Jays fan expected out of this lineup of nobodies and wannabes.

Starting pitching really came through, and it looks like it will be the backbone of the this club. Stroman, Sanchez, Shoemaker and Thornton, who made his major-league debut on Sunday, were lights out dominant.

The batters, however, did not come through with enough timely hitting to energize the crowds and give the Blue Jays a chance to win the series.

It's still early, but all in all, the Blue Jays outperformed expectations for a club that is ranked 22nd in payroll at $113,492,171, according to Spotrac.

So, here are some of the good things and bad things the Blue Jays showed fans in their opening series against the Detroit Tigers.

Blue Jays pitchers struck out 50 batters in the series, setting a franchise record for a regular-season series. The old record had been 48. After four games, and 24 innings pitched, the Blue Jays starters had not given up a single earned run, a franchise record. According to Elias Sports Bureau, that is the fourth longest for a rotation since the start of the expansion era in 1961.
• Marcus Stroman, coming off blisters and a sore shoulder last season, allowed just two hits and zero runs as the Opening Day pitcher on Thursday.
• Matt Shoemaker was the second-day starter. The free-agent acquisition gave up only two hits and two walks while striking out seven in seven innings in the Blue Jays' 6-0 victory.
• Aaron Sanchez, who battled blister issues last season, was firing his fastball up to 97 miles per hour on Saturday. He allowed three hits, while striking out six and walking three in five innings of work as the Jays won 3-0.
• On Sunday, Trent Thornton became the second pitcher in MLB history to have at least eight strikeouts, no runs, no walks and two hits or fewer in his debut. He's a revelation, especially with the prodigious spin rate he gets on his curveball. Thornton was shipped to the Blue Jays from the Houston Astros' minor-league system in exchange for Aledmys Diaz in the off-season. "It was pretty much everything I dreamed of since I was 4 years old," he said after his debut.
• The hitting of utility infielder Richard Urena. On Sunday, he went 3-for-4 with two ground-rule doubles. He could be a revelation too.
• The hitting of Rowdy Tellez and Justin Smoak, who supplied the Blue Jays' two home runs in the series.
• Danny Jansen has a great arm behind the plate. On Thursday, he gunned down Niko Goodrum trying to steal second.
• Brandon Drury showed excellent work at third base with four hits, including a double and a triple in the four games.
• Most of the entire Blue Jays hitters. The Jays are ranked at near the bottom of the league in batting with a team average of only .177. They also struck out 35 times, which is 10th in the majors to start the season.
• Randal Grichuk was a no-show with his bat. A 25-home run hitter last year, he is 0-12 at the plate.
• A baserunning error cost the Jays a victory on Sunday. Richard Urena broke for home after a bobble by Tigers shortstop Jordy Mercer with two outs, and was caught easily in a bid to win the game in the 10th. It appeared that he had his head down and didn't see the stop sign.

Rowdy Tellez got the crowd on its feet on Sunday when he came off the bench in the eighth inning with the Blue Jays down 3-0 and two men on. He stroked a 395-foot blast to center field to tie the game.

The Blue Jays fans mostly sat on their hands for four games as the Blue Jays hitters were numb at the plate. But apart from Rowdy Tellez's home run on Sunday, Justin Smoak got the most applause for his two-run home run shot on Saturday, powering the Blue Jays to a 3-0 victory.

The Elvis Luciano experiment has begun. At only 18, he became the first MLB player in history to be born in the year 2000. Luciano made his major league debut from the bullpen on Sunday as the youngest pitcher in Blue Jay history. A Rule 5 draft pick, he didn't look out of place as he tossed 1 1/3 scoreless innings, surrendering one double and issuing an intentional walk. Prior to Sunday, he hadn't pitched above Rookie Ball.</s>Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window)

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Blue Jays reliever Elvis Luciano made his major league debut on Sunday against the Tigers. The right-hander gave up a hit and a walk and struck out one while tossing 1 1/3 scoreless innings of work.

More astonishingly, though, Baseball Reference points out that Luciano is the first player born in the 2000’s to reach the majors. The 19-year-old came into the world on February 15, 2000. The next-youngest player in baseball is Fernando Tatis Jr., who was born on January 2, 1999. After Tatis, it’s Juan Soto, born on October 25, 1998.

Also from the “Wanna Feel Old?” department: Since Adrián Beltré (retired) and Bartolo Colón are not active, we no longer have any players in Major League Baseball who played in the 20th century.

Time comes for us all.</s>League play set to start for baseball and softball</s>TORONTO -- Nicholas Castellanos' RBI single in the 11th helped the Detroit Tigers edge the Toronto Blue Jays 4-3 on Sunday afternoon at the Rogers Centre.

Daniel Stumpf (1-0) picked up the win and Shane Greene provided the save as the Tigers (2-2) earned a split of the series with the Blue Jays (2-2).

Thomas Pannone (0-1) was saddled with the loss.

Blue Jays starter Trent Thornton (0-0) surrendered two hits over five innings while striking out eight in his big league debut. Toronto starters have now pitched 24 shutout innings to begin the season, beating the previous franchise record of eight innings set by Jack Morris in 1992.

In the fifth, Thornton got Mikie Mahtook swinging to record his eighth strikeout of the afternoon setting a new franchise record for strikeouts in a major league debut. The record was previously held by Matthew Boyd and Marc Rzepczynski who each recorded seven strikeouts in their respective debuts.

With Tim Mayza on in relief, Niko Goodrum led off the seventh with a double and later scored on a bases-loaded walk issued to Jordy Mercer by Javy Guerra. Jeimer Candelario then singled to left scoring a pair of runs.

Candelario finished the afternoon going 5-for-6 with a pair of RBIs in the win.

Elvis Luciano became the youngest pitcher in Blue Jays history to make an appearance when he came on in relief of Guerra with two out in the seventh. The 19-year-old is also the first player born in the 2000s to appear in a Major League game.

Tigers starter Matt Moore (0-0) went seven innings allowing just two hits while striking out six and walking two.

Toronto responded in the eighth with Joe Jimenez on in relief for the Tigers, Kevin Pillar reached on a single and advanced to third on a ground rule double from Richard Urena. Rowdy Tellez, pinch-hitting for Luke Maile, then took Jimenez 1-1 changeup over the wall in centre field for his first home run of the season tying the game 3-3.

Notes: Urena replaced Freddy Galvis (lower back tightness) at shortstop in the Blue Jays' starting lineup prior to Sunday's series finale with the Tigers. … Blue Jays LHP Clayton Richard (right knee), Monday's scheduled starter, is expected to be placed on the disabled list. RHP Sean Reid-Foley will get the ball as Toronto opens a three-game series with the Baltimore Orioles. … Sunday's announced attendance was 16,098.</s>ATLANTA — ATLANTA – The Atlanta Braves are off to a rough start, but it’s a long baseball season.

In fact, it’s such a long season that if you buy peanuts and crackerjacks at every Braves game this season, home and away, your food bill would be around $1,600.

Major League Baseball teams play 162 regular season games. That’s twice as long as an NBA season and ten times longer than an NFL season.

Baseball historians tells us the number of games fluctuated until 1920, when Major League Baseball decided to lock down a consistent schedule. There were eighteen teams at the time divided into two divisions.

Baseball decided it would work for each team to play its seven division rivals twenty-two times each for a 154 game schedule. Since baseball is a more slow paced, non-contact sport, players could endure a season of that length.

In 1961, Major League Baseball started adding teams. To continue playing each division rival twenty-two times would mean playing nearly two-hundred games.

“Owners ultimately put a stop to the 22 game format and settled on 162 games,” says baseball historian John Thorn.

The league agreed on eighteen games per rival and set the season at 162 games.

There have been more teams added since then and more adjustments to keep the number at 162. Any longer and the World Series will compete with Thanksgiving.

Some Major League players have complained that the season is already too long and leads to fatigue and injury. But so far, the tradition of a 162 game season has held for over fifty years.</s>TORONTO -- When Aaron Sanchez exited his start on Saturday he had a simple message for Trent Thornton: don't mess it up.

The rookie right-hander was confused at first, before realizing Sanchez was referring to the string of scoreless innings Blue Jays starters had amassed to start the season.

Thornton pitched five scoreless innings in his big league debut, but did not factor into the decision as the Blue Jays fell 4-3 in 11 innings to the Detroit Tigers on Sunday afternoon.

"It was pretty much everything I ever dreamed of since I was four years old," said Thornton who surrendered two hits while striking out eight. "I was able to go out there and kind of show I belonged there, had my family out to witness that, it was really special."

Nicholas Castellanos delivered an RBI single in the 11th and Daniel Stumpf (1-0) picked up the win as the Tigers (2-2) earned a split of the series with the Blue Jays (2-2). Shane Greene provided the save in the victory.

Thomas Pannone (0-1) was saddled with the loss.

In the fifth, Thornton got Mikie Mahtook swinging to record his eighth strikeout of the afternoon setting a new franchise record for strikeouts in a major league debut. The record was previously held by Matthew Boyd and Marc Rzepczynski who each recorded seven strikeouts in their respective debuts.

Toronto starters have now combined for a franchise-best 24 shutout innings to start the season -- the first team to do so since the 1994 Atlanta Braves' starters tossed a combined 25 scoreless frames.

"That's the main (reason) we've been in every game: pitching and defence. I feel really good about it," said Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo. "They have been outstanding, the whole rotation, they've been pretty good. We have a chance every day."

With Tim Mayza on in relief, Niko Goodrum led off the seventh with a double and later scored on a bases-loaded walk issued to Jordy Mercer by Javy Guerra. Jeimer Candelario then singled to left scoring a pair of runs.

Candelario finished the afternoon going 5-for-6 with a pair of RBIs in the win.

Elvis Luciano became the youngest pitcher in Blue Jays history to make an appearance when he came on in relief of Guerra with two out in the seventh. The 19-year-old is also the first player born in the 2000s to appear in a Major League game.

"He was really good. He impresses me with that, being that young and in that situation when he came in, he gave us a chance," Montoyo said. "He gave us a chance to tie the game. He's been very good.

"He's got the stuff to compete in the big leagues, 95, 94 with good changeup."

Tigers starter Matt Moore (0-0) went seven innings allowing just two hits while striking out six and walking two.

Toronto responded in the eighth with Joe Jimenez on in relief for the Tigers, Kevin Pillar reached on a single and advanced to third on a ground rule double from Richard Urena. Rowdy Tellez, pinch-hitting for Luke Maile, then took Jimenez 1-1 changeup over the wall in centre field for his first home run of the season tying the game 3-3.

Notes: Urena replaced Freddy Galvis (lower back tightness) at shortstop in the Blue Jays' starting lineup prior to Sunday's series finale with the Tigers.

Blue Jays LHP Clayton Richard (right knee), Monday's scheduled starter, is expected to be placed on the disabled list. RHP Sean Reid-Foley will get the ball as Toronto opens a three-game series with the Baltimore Orioles.</s>TORONTO (AP) — Nicholas Castellanos singled home the go-ahead run in the 11th inning, Jeimer Candelario had five hits and the Detroit Tigers beat the Toronto Blue Jays 4-3 on Sunday after blowing a late lead.

Castellanos drove in Grayson Greiner, and the Tigers salvaged a split of the four-game series to open the season. The decisive hit came off left-hander Thomas Pannone (0-1), the eighth pitcher of the game for Toronto.

Candelario drove in two runs and Daniel Stumpf (1-0) pitched one inning for the win. Toronto put the potential tying run at third with two outs in the bottom of the 11th but Shane Greene got Teoscar Hernandez to line out for his second save.

Candelario came in 1 for 12 on the season and 0 for 9 with seven strikeouts since his lone base hit on opening day. He singled in the first, sixth, seventh and 11th, and doubled in the ninth.

Trailing 3-0 in the eighth, the Blue Jays tied it against Joe Jimenez when pinch-hitter Rowdy Tellez hit a three-run homer to center field.

The drive undid seven shutout innings by Tigers starter Matt Moore. Making his Detroit debut, the left-hander allowed two hits, walked one and struck out six.

Moore was perfect through four before walking Randal Grichuk on a 3-2 pitch to begin the fifth. Moore lost his no-hit bid with one out in the sixth when Richard Urena grounded a single up the middle. Danny Jansen's two-out double moved Urena to third, but Moore escaped by fanning Brandon Drury on a 3-2 pitch.

After doubling against Stumpf in the 10th, Urena tried to score from second on an infield single by pinch-hitter Freddy Galvis. Tigers shortstop Jordy Mercer, who had dived to corral Galvis' hit, threw home from his knees in time to retire Urena and send the game to the 11th.

Detroit, which had scored two runs through its first three games and none since the 10th inning on opening day, snapped a 24-inning scoreless drought with a three-run seventh. Javy Guerra issued a bases-loaded walk to Mercer before Candelario followed with a two-run single.

Making his major league debut, Blue Jays right-hander Trent Thornton allowed two hits in five shutout innings. Toronto starting pitchers have worked 24 consecutive scoreless innings to begin the season, tripling the previous club record. It's baseball's longest such streak since Atlanta starters threw 25 shutout innings to begin the 1994 season.

Thonton struck out eight, the most by a Blue Jays pitcher making his first big league appearance. The previous record was seven, jointly held by Matt Boyd and Marc Rzepczynski.

Thornton wasn't the only Blue Jays pitcher to make his debut. Right-hander Elvis Luciano, who turned 19 in February, became the youngest pitcher in team history when he replaced Guerra in the seventh. Luciano, selected from Kansas City in the Rule 5 draft at the winter meetings in December, is the first big league player to be born in this century. He allowed one hit in 1 1/3 innings.

Tigers: Miguel Cabrera started at DH. Cabrera left Saturday's game after being hit on the right hand by Aaron Sanchez's pitch in the sixth.

Blue Jays: Galvis (lower back) was scratched from the starting lineup and replaced by Urena. Galvis extended his MLB-leading streak of consecutive games played to 329 when he pinch hit. ... LHP Clayton Richard (right knee) will not make his scheduled start Monday against Baltimore. RHP Sean Reid-Foley will start in his place. ... Thornton started in place of LHP Ryan Borucki (left elbow). Borucki is expected to throw off a mound sometime this week.

Tigers: RHP Tyson Ross starts Monday in the opener of a three-game series at Yankee Stadium. Ross is 0-3 with a 6.88 ERA in six career games against New York.

Blue Jays: Reid-Foley went 2-4 with a 5.13 in seven starts for Toronto last season.</s>TORONTO (AP) — After getting blanked in back-to-back losses, the Detroit Tigers scored just enough runs Sunday to leave Canada on a winning note.

Nicholas Castellanos had an RBI single in the 11th inning, Jeimer Candelario got five hits and the Tigers beat the Toronto Blue Jays 4-3 despite blowing a late lead.

"That was a huge win for us," said shortstop Jordy Mercer, who preserved a 3-all tie with a defensive gem in the 10th inning. "I'm not talking record-wise, I'm talking about momentum. I'm talking coming together as a team, not giving up. That's what good teams are made of."

Castellanos drove in catcher Grayson Greiner, and the Tigers salvaged a split of the four-game series to open the season. The decisive hit came off left-hander Thomas Pannone (0-1), Toronto's eighth pitcher of the game.

"It's a really good feeling for the team," Candelario said.

Candelario drove in two runs and Daniel Stumpf (1-0) pitched one inning for the win. Toronto put a runner at third with two outs in the bottom of the 11th but Shane Greene got Teoscar Hernandez to line out for his second save.

Candelario came in 1 for 12 on the season and 0 for 9 with seven strikeouts since his lone base hit on opening day. He singled in the first, sixth, seventh and 11th, and doubled in the ninth.

"He had a great day, a super day," Tigers manager Ron Gardenhire said. "Five hits in a ballgame is pretty special."

Trailing 3-0 in the eighth, the Blue Jays tied it against Joe Jimenez when pinch-hitter Rowdy Tellez hit a three-run homer to center field.

The drive undid seven shutout innings by Tigers starter Matt Moore. Making his Detroit debut, the left-hander allowed two hits, walked one and struck out six.

Moore was perfect through four before walking Randal Grichuk on a 3-2 pitch to begin the fifth. Moore lost his no-hit bid with one out in the sixth when Richard Urena grounded a single up the middle. Danny Jansen's two-out double moved Urena to third, but Moore escaped by fanning Brandon Drury.

After doubling against Stumpf in the 10th, Urena tried to score from second on an infield single by pinch-hitter Freddy Galvis. Mercer, who had dived to his right to corral Galvis' hit, threw home from his knees in time to retire Urena and send the game to the 11th.

"That was probably the play of the game," Greiner said. "That was incredible."

Scrambling after the loose ball, not looking at the runner, Mercer said he knew Urena was trying to score when he heard the crowd noise rise.

"That's when I knew I had one chance to pick it up and throw it," Mercer said. "I just picked it up, turned and threw it. Luckily it was a good throw."

"That was a big, big moment for us," Gardenhire said.

Detroit, which had mustered two runs through its first three games and none since the 10th inning on opening day, snapped a 24-inning scoreless drought with a three-run seventh. Javy Guerra issued a bases-loaded walk to Mercer before Candelario followed with a two-run single.

Making his major league debut, Blue Jays right-hander Trent Thornton allowed two hits in five shutout innings. Toronto starting pitchers have worked 24 consecutive scoreless innings to begin the season, tripling the previous club record. It's baseball's longest such streak since Atlanta starters threw 25 shutout innings to begin the 1994 season.

Thornton struck out eight, the most by a Blue Jays pitcher making his first big league appearance. The previous record was seven, jointly held by Matt Boyd and Marc Rzepczynski.

"I know Detroit is struggling at the plate, but his stuff (is) 94-95 (mph) with the breaking pitches and everything," Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo said. "He could've gotten any team out."

Thornton wasn't the only Blue Jays pitcher to make his debut. Right-hander Elvis Luciano, who turned 19 in February, became the youngest pitcher in team history when he replaced Guerra in the seventh. Luciano, selected from Kansas City in the Rule 5 draft at the winter meetings in December, is the first big league player born in this century. He allowed one hit in 1 1/3 innings.

"I wasn't nervous at all," Luciano said through a translator. "I was anxious because I really wanted to do the best I could for the team."

Blue Jays pitchers combined to strike out 50 Tigers batters over the four games, a team record. Toronto struck out 48 Houston batters during a four-game series in July 2013.

Tigers: Miguel Cabrera started at DH. Cabrera left Saturday's game after being hit on the right hand by Aaron Sanchez's pitch in the sixth.

Blue Jays: Galvis (lower back) was scratched from the starting lineup and replaced by Urena. Galvis extended his MLB-leading streak of consecutive games played to 329 when he pinch hit. ... LHP Clayton Richard (right knee) will not make his scheduled start Monday against Baltimore. RHP Sean Reid-Foley will start in his place. ... Thornton started in place of LHP Ryan Borucki (left elbow). Borucki is expected to throw off a mound sometime this week.

Tigers: RHP Tyson Ross starts Monday in the opener of a three-game series at Yankee Stadium. Ross is 0-3 with a 6.88 ERA in six career games against New York.

Blue Jays: Reid-Foley went 2-4 with a 5.13 in seven starts for Toronto last season.

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Elvis Luciano of the Toronto Blue Jays becomes the first person born in the 2000s to play in a Major League Baseball game.