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Blue Jays homer their way past Rays 7-4

By WTOP Staff

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — The last time the Toronto Blue Jays won a series at Tropicana Field was back in 2007 and Dioner Navarro was the catcher for the losing Tampa Bay Rays.

Now he helped the Blue Jays clinch their first series victory since then, homering for the second straight game as Toronto won 7-4 on Wednesday night.

“Better later than never, right?” Navarro said after spotting the Blue Jays an early 2-0 lead with a two-run homer off Chris Archer. They went to win their fourth straight game.

By winning the first two games of the three-game series, the Blue Jays clinched their first series victory at Tropicana Field since April 6-8, 2007, breaking a string of 21 straight non-winning series here. They had lost 17 consecutive road series against the Rays (including one in Orlando) before splitting a four-game series on May 6-9, 2013.

“For one series we were able to get the monkey off our back,” said Blue Jays manager John Gibbons. “Now we’ve got to get greedy and go out and win that one tomorrow, come up with a great series.”

Edwin Encarnacion also homered for Toronto, and Adam Lind had four straight hits and scored twice. Encarnacion’s 29th homer completed a three-run run fifth inning off Archer (8-8) that gave Toronto a 6-0 lead.

Marcus Stroman pitched five shutout innings before giving up two runs on four hits in the sixth. Stroman (9-5) gave up seven hits and two runs in six innings, winning his second straight start.

“We’re starting to put it together,” he said. “The offense and the confidence have been there all year. It’s just starting to finally click, I feel.

Aaron Sanchez pitched the ninth for his second save.

Archer (8-8) gave up six runs in six innings and yielded 10 hits for the second straight time.

“My job is to get people out and I didn’t do a good job of that, didn’t execute the pitches,” he said. “Both (homers) I had two strikes on. Didn’t execute, period.”

Evan Longoria drove in Tampa Bay’s first run with a two-out single in the sixth, then hit his 18th home run off Dustin McGowan in the eighth.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Blue Jays: Encarnacion was the DH for the second straight game due to minor back discomfort. . . . RHP R.A. Dickey, Tuesday night’s winning pitcher, was hit in the head by a line drive during batting practice. The Jays said he is not injured.

Rays: CF Desmond Jennings (bruised left knee) was out of the lineup for the sixth consecutive games and could miss a few more games. … LHP Matt Moore, coming back from elbow ligament replacement surgery in April, could play catch for the first time next week.

ON DECK

Rays RHP Jake Odorizzi (10-11) and Blue Jays LHP Mark Buehrle (11-9) are the scheduled starters in the finale of a three-game series Thursday night. Odorizzi is coming off a 7-0 win over Boston Saturday in which he allowed one hit in seven innings.

DELAYS OF GAME

The game was held up for 30 minutes during the third inning when lightning struck a nearby power station, knocking out a bank of lights. There was a delay of 3 minutes, 21 seconds when an umpire review confirmed Encarnacion’s home run, and another delay if 1:24 when a replay challenge gave the Rays’ James Loney an RBI single after he had been called out.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Don’t Settle for Student Loans to Pay for Online Education

By WTOP Staff
Online college programs are becoming a more popular choice for prospective students, with one study finding that more than 6 million students enrolled in at least one online course in fall 2015. The popularity of these courses can be attributed in part to their flexibility with working adults' schedules, students' ability to progress more quickly through online programs and, oftentimes, cheaper tuition. [See 10 low-cost online bachelor's programs for out-of-state students.]Online degrees can be beneficial to many college students, but some studies have shown online learners complete their programs at lower rates than students at traditional brick-and-mortar campuses. Individuals with student loans but no degree comprise two-thirds of defaulted borrowers. Though these numbers are not encouraging, just like for traditional programs, there are ways to reduce how much you'll need to borrow for an online program to ensure you won't become one of these statistics. Don't just settle on borrowing student loans to cover the whole cost of your program and living expenses. Instead, start thinking about how to cut costs and cover your balance in different ways, such as the following. -- Grants and scholarships: Even though you are taking an online course, you can still apply and receive grants and scholarships. But your first step should be to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, commonly referred to as the FAFSA, which will allow you to receive a Pell Grant if your expected family contribution is low enough. The EFC criteria and award amounts are adjusted annually, but the 2017-2018 academic year awards range from $606 to $5,920, which could significantly lower the amount you borrow annually. Your next step is to apply for scholarships. You can start by checking online scholarship search engines, such as the Salt Scholarship Search, College Board's BigFuture and Peterson's. But don't forget to take advantage of local organizations and your school's financial aid office. Both may offer scholarships that you can't find with a national scholarship search. [Review these 10 sites to kick off your scholarship search.]For instance, organizations like the Elks Club, Knights of Columbus or the Rotary Club typically offer scholarships annually to local students. Just because you're going to school online doesn't mean you're ineligible. Visit your local library for scholarship listings, and ask around town. You might be surprised how many local organizations offer scholarships. While these scholarships typically aren't large, every little bit counts. Each dollar you receive in a scholarship is a dollar you don't have to borrow and pay interest on. -- Work-study: Another option for online students may be work-study awards. Not all students enrolled in online programs are eligible, but students at some schools -- including, for example, SUNY Empire State College and Liberty University -- are. Work-study awards are not given upfront like scholarships and grants. In most cases, they are an offer to earn up to the awarded amount if you secure an eligible work-study job. While there is a misconception that all work-study jobs must be on campus, students can work for off-campus, nonprofit or public employers as long as the work is in the public's interest. You may be able to work for a for-profit employer if the job is relevant to your course of study. No matter who the outside employer is, it will need to have an established agreement with your college for you to receive work-study funds. Remember, to be eligible for federal financial aid, you must be enrolled and pursuing a degree or certificate. If you're not working toward a credential, Pell Grants and work-study won't be option, but you may still be able to take advantage of private scholarships -- just be sure to read the eligibility criteria carefully. [Explore what to know about financial aid in online programs.]-- Pay as you go: One of the great benefits to enrolling online is the flexible schedule, which can allow you to complete your college coursework around your responsibilities. But prospective students often overlook using their part- or full-time job earnings as an option for paying for college. Almost 80 percent of college students in 2015 worked at least part time while attending classes, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. By budgeting and thinking strategically about your college costs, you can likely reduce your dependence on student loans by paying a portion out of pocket. Many -- but not all -- online programs are less expensive than traditional programs and often have shorter payment periods. Six, eight or 10 weeks are common course durations. Because of the frequency of payments in an online setting, you may be well-placed to pay as you go and possibly avoid borrowing altogether. Attending college online and avoiding student loans may be challenging, but if you are willing to put in the effort, you can limit the amount you need to borrow. More from U.S. News Q&A: Understanding Student Loan Discharge Eligibility Student Loan Refinancing Isn't Right for All Borrowers
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