Hicks struck out one in 1.1 perfect innings of relief Friday to record his ninth save of the season, and first as a Blue Jay, in a 7-3 win over the Red Sox.
The Jays held a three-run lead when Hicks took the mound in the bottom of the eighth, and the insurance run they tacked on in the ninth didn't cause him to take his foot off the gas -- the right-hander needed only nine pitches, all strikes, to get the four outs and he topped out at 99.9 mph with his power sinker. Toronto is using a closing committee with Jordan Romano (back) on the shelf, and while Hicks will likely continue to split save chances with Yimi Garcia and Erik Swanson depending on availability and matchups, performances like this will make manager John Schneider very comfortable deploying his newest high-leverage option at the end of games.