A’s beat Blue Jays 8-7 with help of instant replay

OAKLAND, Calif. — Even as he lay on his back looking up at plate umpire Mark Wegner calling him out, Josh Reddick thought he was safe.

So did Oakland third base coach Ron Washington, who frantically gestured toward the home dugout looking for a challenge.

Athletics manager Bob Melvin saw it the same way — and he was watching from the clubhouse after being ejected earlier in the game.

Turned out, all three of them were right.

Reddick scored the tiebreaking run in the seventh inning on a play that was overturned by replay, and Oakland held on to beat the Toronto Blue Jays 8-7 Friday night.

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“I had a good view of it on video from about 10 different angles,” Melvin said. “That’s a play (where) we have to be aggressive. It’s the right call to send him, he was safe, made a good slide. Ended up being a good outcome for us.”

Reddick drew a two-out walk from Brett Cecil (0-6) and went to second on Khris Davis’ single. Stephen Vogt followed with a sharp single up the middle before centre fielder Kevin Pillar appeared to throw out a sliding Reddick at the plate.

Wegner initially called Reddick out, but A’s bench coach Mark Kotsay — filling in for Melvin — challenged the ruling. The call was overturned after a review of 2 minutes, 56 seconds.

“I thought I got in pretty good, but I’m not the guy that’s going to look back in the dugout and do the headset movement,” Reddick said. “I knew I was safe.”

Reddick, Davis and Vogt all homered for the A’s. Ryan Dull (3-2) retired five batters to earn the win, and Ryan Madson pitched the ninth for his 18th save.

The Blue Jays lost for the second time in 10 games and dropped three games out of first place in the AL East. They couldn’t hold leads of 3-2 and 7-3.

Reddick homered in the third. Davis and Vogt hit back-to-back shots in the fifth. All three home runs came off Toronto starter Marcus Stroman.

Stroman was chased after Vogt’s home run in the fifth. The right-hander gave up seven runs in 4 2/3 innings with five strikeouts.

“Early in the game he was ball one on everybody,” Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said. “You’ve got to get ahead. He just wasn’t as sharp, really.”

Oakland rookie Daniel Mengden allowed seven runs and six hits in 3 1/3 innings.

Melvin and first baseman Yonder Alonso were ejected in the fourth for arguing balls and strikes.

NEW-LOOK A’S

Before the game, Melvin said the A’s plan to cut into the playing time of OF Coco Crisp and 3B Danny Valencia to take a look at some of the team’s younger prospects like Jake Smolinski and Ryon Healy. Both started against Toronto, batting eighth and ninth in the lineup, respectively. Smolinski has appeared in only 77 major league games. Healy, called up from Triple-A Nashville before the game, made his major league debut. Crisp went 0 for 5 as the designated hitter, and Valencia entered on defence in the fifth after Alonso’s ejection.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Blue Jays: Jose Bautista’s sore left big toe is getting better but there is still no word on when he might return. Bautista has been hitting off a tee. … RHP Marco Estrada (back) is expected to come off the disabled list in time to start against Seattle when the Blue Jays return home on July 22.

Athletics: OF Billy Burns was optioned to Nashville after struggling at the plate over the past month. Burns ranks eighth in the AL with 14 stolen bases but is batting just .234. … RHP Nick Tepesch was designated for assignment.

UP NEXT

Blue Jays: RHP R.A. Dickey (7-9) starts Saturday in Oakland. The knuckleballer has allowed six earned runs over his last 21 innings.

Athletics: Sonny Gray (3-8) hopes to end a seven-game losing streak that is tied for the longest in the majors. The right-hander has a 6.16 ERA over his past 12 starts.

Michael Wagaman, The Associated Press