TORONTO — Detroit Tigers veteran Mark Canha played 48 games without a home run.

The 35-year-old, who has been struggling on offense for the past three months, snapped the home run drought in the fourth inning of Friday's slugfest against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre.

His two-run home run off right-hander Chris Bassitt helped the Tigers take down the Blue Jays, 5-4, in Friday's opener of a three-game series (and a seven-game road trip) to open the second half of the season. Eight of Friday's nine runs were scored on home runs.

The Tigers (48-50) also received a boost from right-hander Jack Flaherty pitching into the sixth inning with eight strikeouts and rookie Wenceel Pérez homering in the seventh inning.

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The Tigers and Blue Jays traded home runs throughout Friday's clash, totaling four homers. The final home run, from Toronto's George Springer, trimmed the Tigers' lead to 5-4 in the eighth inning, but right-handed reliever Jason Foley and left-handed reliever Tyler Holton took over and slammed the door in the eighth and ninth innings, respectively.

Holton recorded his third save of the season in the ninth.

The homer party began with Canha in the fourth inning. He turned on Bassitt's middle-in changeup for a 384-foot two-run home run to left field.

His big swing put the Tigers ahead, 3-0.

Canha hit five home runs in his first 23 games with the Tigers, then hit No. 6 in the Tigers' 39th game, on May 11. Friday marked the end of a 48-game stretch without a homer.

He entered Friday hitting .202 with a .550 OPS since May 1, a span of 55 games.

Before Canha's homer, Riley Greene put the Tigers ahead, 1-0, in the fourth inning with an RBI single to score Matt Vierling, who opened the inning with a double.

Canha finished 1-for-3 with one walk and two strikeouts.

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Jack Flaherty solid despite big swing

Flaherty took a perfect game into the fifth inning.

And the veteran right-hander dominated against the Blue Jays until his final pitch with two strikes and two outs in the sixth inning.

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A big swing from Vladimir Guerrero Jr., though, spoiled the final line of a brilliant performance from Flaherty, who allowed two runs on three hits and one walk with eight strikeouts across 5⅔ innings. His 98th and final pitch landed in the stands in left field.

Guerrero hit a middle-middle slider from Flaherty for a two-run home run, cutting the Tigers' deficit to 3-2. He crushed the ball 445 feet with a 117.5 mph exit velocity. The homer occurred after Flaherty walked rookie Spencer Horwitz on six pitches.

Flaherty, though, continued his dominance as a top trade candidate despite the home run in the sixth. The 28-year-old maintained his 3.13 ERA through 17 starts, and his pitches looked sharp in his second start since returning from a back injury.

The Blue Jays couldn't hit Flaherty's secondary pitches until the mistake to Guerrero.

Before the sixth, the Blue Jays didn't put a runner on base until Bo Bichette's leadoff single in the fifth inning. He won a nine-pitch battle with a single down the first-base line to break up Flaherty's perfect game.

Flaherty stranded two runners in the fifth inning by striking out back-to-back batters. He struck out Alejandro Kirk looking with a fastball painted on the outside edge, then he struck out Ernie Clement swinging with a down-and-away curveball.

After Guererro's homer, right-handed reliever Will Vest replaced Flaherty.

More home runs

The Tigers answered the home run in the seventh inning.

Pérez hit a two-run home run — extending the Tigers' lead to 5-2 — over the wall in right-center field with two outs in the seventh. He hit a first-pitch sinker to chase Bassitt from his start.

It was Pérez's sixth homer in 2024.

The Blue Jays, of course, countered Pérez's home run in the eighth inning with Springer's two-run home run off right-handed reliever Beau Brieske.

Springer turned on a hanging, middle-in changeup.

The homer from Springer trimmed the Tigers' lead to 5-4.

Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold.

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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Tigers ride pair of 2-run homers to 5-4 win over Toronto