TORONTO _ Norichika Aoki watched the pitch heading his way, a "fastball" that didn't even reach 87 miles per hour and was aimed for the middle of the strike zone. He couldn't pass that up, so he swung as hard as he could _ and watched the ball travel 100 feet, mostly straight up. As his popup headed back down, Aoki gripped his bat with two hands and slammed it into the Rogers Center turf in anger.
If any at-bat summed up the Blue Jays' feelings about facing Bartolo Colon, it was that one. The Twins right-hander, his 20-year career reborn by a midseason lifeline from Minnesota, put on one of the more mesmerizing _ or exasperating, depending on your loyalties _ magic shows of the season on Friday.
Colon threw 96 pitches, roughly 85 of them fastballs but fewer than a dozen threatening 90 mph, got knocked around for nine hits, didn't strike out a single Blue Jay, and yet emerged with a 6-1 victory over Toronto.
Colon delivered the Twins' first victory in the former SkyDome since June 11, 2014. Phil Hughes, Jared Burton and Casey Fein were the pitchers that day, and Kendrys Morales _ whom Colon forced into an inning-ending ground ball that foiled a mild Toronto threat _ was the hitting hero back then. The Twins were 0-7 in Toronto since that date, and the Blue Jays had scored at least eight runs in the last five.
Colon, wearing "Morales" on his jersey in honor of his late mother, Adriana Morales, also helped the Twins, who had lost two straight games, keep their improbable grip on a playoff spot, if only by a half-game. And he joined Mike Pelfrey (in 2015) as the only Twins since 2010 to retire 20 hitters, but none via a strikeout.
Justin Smoak wasn't impressed by Colon's virtuoso performance, collecting a double, a single, a walk and his 35th home run of the year, the latter on an 81-mph changeup that he crushed into the seats in left-center. But Smoak's big night meant little because Colon simply retired Jose Bautista, batting right behind him, all three times he was given a chance, all three times ending Toronto's inning.
Minnesota's offense, meanwhile, wakened from its two-game stupor in Chicago, kept steady pressure on starter J.A. Happ and the Jays bullpen by putting the leadoff man aboard in eight of the nine innings. That wasn't the only way they put pressure on the Jays, either _ with longtime outfielder Bautista playing third base, the Twins laid down three bunts, and all three became hits.
Two were by Byron Buxton, including his second squeeze play of the month, this time bringing Brian Dozier home with the game's first run in the third inning. Batting third in the Twins' injury-depleted lineup, Buxton collected three hits, drove in two runs, and made another miraculous catch in center field, leaping onto the warning track and tumbling head-over-heels to snag Rob Refsnyder's drive to right-center, saving two runs.
Jorge Polanco also doubled home a pair of runs off Happ, one of his three hits. Mitch Garver collected his first career extra-base hit, a triple, then scored on a sacrifice fly, and Joe Mauer had three hits as well.
And the game ended on another historic note: John Curtiss became the 12th Twin to make his major league debut this season, and the 50th player to appear in a game, both franchise records. Curtiss retired the Jays in order, retiring Smoak on a routine fly ball to seal the victory.
