Blue Jays Sweep Red Sox

While Craig Grebeck kept Toronto's hopes alive, he's not focusing on a pennant race.

Grebeck hit a go-ahead triple in the eighth inning as the Blue Jays beat Boston 8-7 Sunday for a four-game sweep that pulled them within five games of the Red Sox in the AL wild-card race.

Boston's lead hasn't been this small since July 26, when the Red Sox were 4 ½ games ahead of Texas.

"We don't have many games to go, and we're still quite a ways out of it, so we're not even thinking about it," Grebeck said. "It's fun winning, and this team is having fun right now, so we're just going to leave it at that."

Jose Canseco homered for the third consecutive game, reaching 40 homers for the third time in his career and the first time since 1991. It also gave him 1,200 career RBI.

Benito Santiago, in his first plate appearances since an automobile accident on Jan. 4, was 1-for-2 with a bases-loaded walk. He was activated Friday.

Toronto, which has won 10 consecutive games for the first time since 1987, led 7-1 before Boston scored two runs in the seventh and tied it in the eighth on Troy O'Leary's two-run double off Dan Plesac, Mike Stanley's RBI double off Paul Quantrill (3-4) and Darren Bragg's run-scoring single.

"We battled back at the end," Boston's Nomar Garciaparra said. "Obviously, we didn't go into the tank after losing the first three games."

Tony Fernandez reached on a one-out single off Derek owe (3-9) in the bottom half, stole second and with two outs, then stole third. Grebeck, who tied a season high with three RBI, tripled into the gap in left-center.

"Even when Boston came back from a six-run deficit and tied it up at 7, we came back to the dugout and said this is still our game," Grebeck said. "It could of been real easy for this team to put our head down."

Boston, which does not play the Blue Jays again this season, lost for the eighth time in 11 games. The Red Sox have 21 games to play and Toronto has 19.

We've just got to get back on track," Boston's Mo Vaughn said. "We can't doubt ourselves. We're still in the lead and in command."

At the end of the eighth, Quantrill and Toronto manager Tim Johnson were ejected by plate umpire Dale Scott after arguing a pickoff call on Bragg at first base. They were the first ejections for the Blue Jays this season.

Red Sox manager Jimy Williams was ejected by Scott in the sixth for arguing a bases-loaded call against Red Sox reliever John Wasdin.

Robert Person, recalled Thursday from the minors, pitched the ninth for his first major-league save.

"When I was down in Syracuse, I would read the newspaper every day, and I was watching what was going on and cheering them on," Person said. "Sweeping in Boston is the best thing we could do for ourselves."

Toronto starter Chris Carpenter gave up three runs and four hits in six-plus innings. Boston's Pete Schourek allowed four runs and four hits in five innings.

Canseco hit a solo homer in the first and Shawn Green's 32nd homer made it 3-0 in the third.

After Vaughn hit his 35th homer in the fourth inning, Alex Gonzalez put the Blue Jays ahead 4-1 with a sacrifice fly in the fifth. Wasdin's walk to Benito Santiago forced in a run in the sixth and Grebeck followed with a two-run single.

Stanley's 29th homer pulled Boston to 7-3 in the seventh.

Notes