Kazuma Okamoto hits tiebreaking homer in the sixth inning as Blue Jays beat Marlins 2-1

TORONTO (AP) — Kazuma Okamoto hit a tiebreaking home run in the sixth inning and the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Miami Marlins 2-1 on Wednesday.

Jeff Hoffman (3-3) got four outs for the win as the Blue Jays won for the eighth time in 12 games. Tyler Rogers finished for his second save in four chances.

Otto Lopez went 4 for 4 with an RBI, but the Marlins lost their second straight after winning the previous four.

Miami put runners at first and second with nobody out against Louis Varland in the eighth but couldn’t score. Jakob Marsee grounded into a fielder’s choice, then got caught stealing second as Connor Norby struck out.

Okamoto connected off left-hander Andrew Nardi (3-3), his 11th homer of the season. He hadn’t gone deep since May 5 at Tampa Bay.

The home run came in Okamoto’s first plate appearance after being hit by a 97 mph pitch from Miami's Eury Pérez.

After Pérez hit Okamoto, he appeared to stare into Toronto’s dugout. Blue Jays manager John Schneider yelled at Pérez, but the situation did not escalate.

Pérez set a season-high by striking out nine in four shutout innings but exited after his right hamstring spasmed while he was stretching in the dugout.

Pérez allowed three hits, all singles, and walked none.

Michael Petersen replaced Pérez but couldn’t hold a 1-0 lead. Tyler Heineman drew a two-out walk and scored on Nathan Lukes' double.

Toronto’s Kevin Gausman allowed one run and six hits in five innings.

Lopez hit an RBI single in the first, but the Marlins didn’t score again.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. returned after missing two games because of a sore right elbow. Guerrero was hit by a pitch Sunday.

Marlins: RHP Max Meyer (5-0, 2.52 ERA) is scheduled to start at New York on Friday against Mets RHP Freddy Peralta (3-4, 3.52).

Blue Jays: LHP Patrick Corbin (2-1, 3.86 ERA) is expected to start at Baltimore on Thursday. The Orioles had not named a starter.

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Miami Marlins' Xavier Edwards (9) rounds the bases before scoring on Otto Lopez's RBI single off Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Kevin Gausman during the first inning of a baseball game in Toronto, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)

Miami Marlins' Heriberto Hernández (13) is caught trying to steal third by Toronto Blue Jays third baseman Kazuma Okamoto (7) during the sixth inning of a baseball game in Toronto, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)

Toronto Blue Jays' Kazuma Okamoto (7) rounds the bases after hitting a solo home run during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Miami Marlins in Toronto, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)

Toronto Blue Jays' Kazuma Okamoto (7) hits a solo home run in front of Miami Marlins catcher Liam Hicks (34) during the sixth inning of a baseball game in Toronto, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks inched to more records Wednesday after oil prices fell and eased the pressure on households and businesses worldwide.

The S&P 500 edged up by less than 0.1% and added to its all-time high set the day before. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 182 points, or 0.4%, and the Nasdaq composite gained 0.1% as both indexes also set records.

Stocks of companies with big fuel bills helped lead the way on hopes that lower oil prices will remove a big drag on their profits. Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings climbed 6.1%, and United Airlines rallied 6.3%. Delta Air Lines rose 3% and set an all-time high.

The price for a barrel of Brent crude oil fell 4.6% to $92.25 after the ceasefire between the United States and Iran appeared to hold despite the U.S. military launching what it called “self-defense” strikes in southern Iran. A barrel of benchmark U.S. crude fell even more, 5.5%, to settle at $88.68 and is back to where it was in mid-April on hopes that the United States and Iran can reach an agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and allow oil tankers to exit the Persian Gulf for deliveries again.

Stocks have been able to run to records despite the painful inflation and uncertainty caused by high oil prices largely because companies have reported surprisingly strong profits for the start of 2026, and the forecast is for them to continue.

Bath & Body Works rallied 9.7%, and Abercrombie & Fitch climbed 8.9% after both reported bigger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. That’s even as U.S. consumers continue to say they’re feeling discouraged about the economy and inflation.

Lululemon Athletica rose 2.9% after reaching a deal with its founder, Chip Wilson, where it will add a former chief marketing officer of ESPN and a former co-CEO of On to its board of directors.

On the losing side of Wall Street was Dick’s Sporting Goods, which dropped 6% despite delivering a profit for the latest quarter that edged past expectations. Analysts pointed to how much profit it wrung out of each $1 in revenue, which some called a bit weak.

Oil-and-gas stocks also sank, hurt by the dropping prices for crude. Exxon Mobil fell 1.3%, and Chevron slipped 1.3%. Halliburton dropped 3.6% to bring its gain for the year so far back toward 40%.

All told, the S&P 500 rose 1.24 to 7,520.36. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 182.60 points to 50,644.28, and the Nasdaq composite gained 18.55 to 26,674.73.

In the bond market, Treasury yields eased after falling oil prices took pressure off inflation. The yield on the 10-year Treasury slipped to 4.48% from 4.50% late Tuesday and from 4.67% roughly a week ago.

It’s a respite following recent gains for yields in bond markets worldwide, which threatened to slow economies and undercut prices for stocks and all kinds of other investments. High yields have already forced the average long-term U.S. mortgage rate to its most expensive level since last summer, and they could curtail companies’ borrowing to build the artificial-intelligence data centers that have supported the U.S. economy’s growth recently.

In stock markets abroad, indexes were mixed across Europe and Asia. South Korea’s Kospi was one of the world’s best performers and jumped 2.3% after SK Hynix, which is a big beneficiary of the AI boom, soared 9.3%.

A day before, Micron Technology surged to become the latest Big Tech company to be worth more than $1 trillion because of AI excitement. Its stock has more than tripled already in 2026, and analysts at UBS said Tuesday it could soar even more because of how fundamentally AI has improved demand for computer memory. It rose another 3.6% Wednesday.

AP Business Writer Elaine Kurtenbach contributed to this report.

Trader Edward Curran, left, and specialist Meric Greenbaum, center, work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

A person looks at an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm Monday, May 25, 2026, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

A dealer walks past near the screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

A dealer walks past near the screens showing the foreign exchange rates at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

A dealer walks past near the screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

A dealer stands near the screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won and the Korean Securities Dealers Automated Quotations (KOSDAQ) at a dealing room of Hana Bank in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, May 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)