Lyle Overbay’s 2-run HR with 2 outs in 9th lifts Blue Jays over Tigers 5-3 in DH opener

Overbay’s HR in 9th lifts Blue Jays over Tigers

DETROIT — Lyle Overbay hit a two-run homer with two outs in the ninth inning, sending the Toronto Blue Jays to a 5-3 victory over the injury-depleted Detroit Tigers on Sunday in the first game of a day-night doubleheader.

Vernon Wells and Jose Molina also homered for Toronto.

Danny Worth went deep for Detroit and Austin Jackson had three hits.

Already missing injured third baseman Brandon Inge, the Tigers placed outfielder Magglio Ordonez and second baseman Carlos Guillen on the 15-day disabled list Sunday. Ordonez broke his right ankle and Guillen strained his right calf in Saturday’s night’s 3-2 loss to Toronto.

Scott Downs (4-5) escaped an eighth-inning jam to earn the win and Kevin Gregg pitched the ninth for his 23rd save in 27 opportunities.

Jose Valverde (1-2) allowed Overbay’s tiebreaking homer.

Jesse Litsch was scheduled to start for the Blue Jays against Jeremy Bonderman in the 6:05 p.m. nightcap, a makeup of Friday night’s rainout.

With Wells on first following a leadoff single that went off Valverde’s left knee, Overbay took an 0-1 pitch to the opposite field and just over the left-field fence, beyond the glove of a leaping Ryan Raburn. It was Overbay’s 11th home run.

Miguel Cabrera’s run-scoring single in the bottom of the eighth tied it at 3. Shawn Camp relieved starter Brett Cecil and yielded a leadoff triple to Jackson. Camp walked Ramon Santiago before getting Raburn to pop out. Cabrera then looped a single to center to score Jackson and send Santiago to third.

Camp was replaced by Downs, who walked Brennan Boesch on a 3-2 pitch but struck out Scott Sizemore swinging and Jeff Larish looking to end the inning.

Wells broke a 2-all tie when he led off the seventh with his 20th home run, which carried over the left-field fence. It was his first home run since June 27.

Molina’s two-run shot in the sixth gave Toronto a 2-0 lead. Edwin Encarnacion led off with an infield single and Molina drove Armando Galarraga’s 1-2 pitch over the left-center fence and into the Blue Jays’ bullpen. It was his third homer.

Detroit came back to tie it in the bottom half.

Worth hit his second homer, lining Cecil’s 0-1 pitch into the left-field stands. Jackson followed with a double and, after moving to third on a wild pitch, scored on Raburn’s two-out double off the left-field fence.

Cecil scattered six hits over seven innings, walked one and struck out six.

Galarraga gave up three runs and six hits in seven innings. He didn’t walk a batter and struck out five.

NOTES: The Tigers purchased the contracts of 1B-3B Jeff Larish and INF Will Rhymes from Triple-A Toledo. They released RHP Billy Buckner and designated pitcher Casey Fien for assignment. … Blue Jays SS Yunel Escobar was 2 for 4, stretching his hitting streak to seven games (12 for 29, .414). … Jackson ran his hitting streak to nine games (18 for 41, .439).