Blue Jays 1, Mariners 0: Mark Buehrle outdueled Taijuan Walker as host Toronto blanked Seattle.

Ryan Goins’ hit-and-run single with two outs in the bottom of the eighth inning scored Munenori Kawasaki from first as the Blue Jays defeated the Mariners for the third straight night. Seattle lost its fifth straight game and stands three games behind Oakland for the American League’s second wild card.

Buehrle (13-10) struck out 10 and gave up three hits in eight-plus innings, departing after Chris Taylor singled to start the ninth. Aaron Sanchez picked off pinch runner James Jones and retired the next two batters for his third save and end the 1-hour, 59-minute contest.

Walker (2-3) allowed one run and four hits and struck out six in eight innings in the top effort of his career. Kawasaki walked with one out and took off on the full-count pitch that Goins placed in shallow center field and the ball took a high hop off the turf as Kawasaki easily beat the throw of Seattle’s Austin Jackson.

Buehrle allowed a double to Corey Hart in the third inning, an infield single to Dustin Ackley in the fourth and Taylor’s lead single in the ninth. Toronto’s hits off Walker were all singles – Jose Bautista in the first, Dioner Navarro in the fifth and Goins in the sixth and eighth.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Buehrle’s season high for strikeouts is 11, set against Tampa Bay on April 2. … Seattle 2B Robinson Cano was hitless in three at-bats to halt a six-game hitting streak as the Mariners were blanked for the 19th time this season. … Bautista is 6-for-9 over the first three games of the series.