LOS ANGELES, June 21 (UPI) -- Odalis Perez continued his remarkable turnaround with 7 1/3 dominant innings Thursday night, and Eric Gagne notched his major league-leading 25th save as the Los Angeles Dodgers edged the Toronto Blue Jays, 2-1, in the rubber game of their interleague series.
Perez (8-3), acquired from the Braves in the trade that sent Gary Sheffield to Atlanta, has become a key component in the Dodgers rotation. He scattered five singles, walked one and struck out three in surpassing his win total for 2001.
Perez has won four straight decisions and has posted victories in both career starts against the Blue Jays. He has gone at least six innings in all but one of his last 15 starts, and teams with Kazuhisa Ishii and Omar Daal to provide Los Angeles with a lefthanded starting presence.
Gagne, who got bumped from the rotation with the emergence of pitchers like Ishii and Perez, has given the Dodgers the closer they desperately needed. The 26-year-old righthander has amassed his 25 saves in 71 games and has struck out 52 in 37 innings this season.
Los Angeles scored both of its runs in the fourth on RBI singles by Adrian Beltre and Alex Cora.
Toronto starter Esteban Loaiza (3-4) pitched well, allowing two runs and six hits in seven innings. He walked three and struck out one, but fell to 0-3 lifetime against the Dodgers.
