TORONTO _ Hyun Soo Kim _ the South Korean import whose spring training struggles had the Orioles trying to send him to the minors to open the year _ might have saved the team's season Wednesday night.
Kim's pinch-hit two-run homer in the top of the ninth inning off Toronto closer Roberto Osuna gave the Orioles a much-needed 3-2 comeback win over the Toronto Blue Jays, shocking a packed Rogers Centre crowd.
The Orioles had scored just two runs in their first 17 innings in Toronto, where they had lost six of eight this season heading into the night. Even with Wednesday's win, they've scored three runs or fewer in 10 of their last 11 games.
But when Kim ended a nine-pitch at-bat by sending Osuna's full-count delivery over the right-field fence, where the Orioles bullpen began celebrating, it was an injection of energy this floundering club needed.
The win kept the Orioles one game ahead of the Detroit Tigers for the second AL wild-card spot with four games to play.
The Tigers were leading the Indians, 6-3, before the game was delayed because of weather.
The Orioles (86-72) trailed the Blue Jays all night, spoiling scoring opportunities throughout the game.
They woke up late. Mark Trumbo's solo homer in the eighth, his majors-leading 46th of the season, cut the deficit to 2-1.
Jonathan Schoop looped a one-out single to right in the ninth, and pinch runner Michael Bourn stole second base before Kim came to the plate to pinch hit for Nolan Reimold.
The Orioles haven't been good against left-handed pitching all season, and Blue Jays starter Francisco Liriano held them scoreless for 6 1/3 innings, striking out 10 batters and giving Toronto back-to-back 10-strikeout outings from its starters for the first time in more than five years.
The Orioles had their chances earlier in the game. They put their first two batters on base in the fourth inning on singles by Adam Jones and Chris Davis. Liriano then struck out the Orioles' 3-4-5 hitters _ Manny Machado, Trumbo and Trey Mancini _ to escape that jam.
They loaded the bases with two outs in the fifth, but Davis struck out looking on a curveball at the letters to end that inning.
And in the seventh, the Orioles had two on with one out, chasing Liriano from the game, but left-hander Brett Cecil struck out Reimold and received a fine defensive play from shortstop Troy Tulowitski on Jones' grounder in the hole to end the inning.
After Trumbo's homer in the eighth, pinch hitter Pedro Alvarez doubled, but Matt Wieters flied out to left to strand the potential tying run in scoring position.
Orioles right-hander Chris Tillman allowed just two runs _ one earned _ over 5 2/3 innings, but two errors in the first inning were costly.
Tillman jumped off the mound to field Toronto leadoff hitter Ezequiel Carrera's roller to the right side. His toss to first base hit Davis in the midsection and was dropped.
Tillman then made an errant pickoff throw past Davis that gave Carrera third base. Carrera scored on Edwin Encarnacion's sacrifice fly.
The Blue Jays (88-70) added another run in the second when Tulowitzki, who hit a one-out double, scored on Kevin Pillar's shallow sacrifice fly to right.
