TORONTO -- All-Star slugger Josh Donaldson said the first half of Torontos season has been a little bit of a roller coaster. Nike Shox Cheap Wholesale .That ride is heading upwards as the first half ends.Donaldson hit a three-run homer, R.A. Dickey won back-to-back starts for the first time in a month and the Blue Jays beat the Detroit Tigers 6-1 on Sunday in the teams final game before the All-Star break.Toronto heads into the break having won eight of nine and 18 of 25. The Blue Jays are second to Baltimore in the AL East and tied with Boston for the first wild-card spot.We feel pretty good with where were at right now, Donaldson said. Weve been playing well as of late. Hopefully have a nice break, everybody comes back ready to go and continue this momentum.Dickey said Torontos recent surge feels like it could be a sustained thing.Donaldson is the sixth player in American League history to hit at least 20 home runs and score 80 runs or more before the All-Star break. The others were Lou Gehrig (1936), Ted Williams (1946), Reggie Jackson (1969), Frank Thomas (1994), and Alex Rodriguez (2000).I think that has something to do with the guys hitting behind me, Donaldson said, referring to slugger Jose Bautista, Edwin Encarnacion and Michael Saunders. Bautista is currently recovering from a sore left big toe. Encarnacion and Saunders will be joining Donaldson for the All-Star Game in San Diego.Donaldson is the first player to score 80 or more runs before the break since 2008, when Ian Kinsler (84) and Hanley Ramirez (80) both did it.Dickey (7-9) allowed one run and five hits in seven innings to win consecutive starts for the first time since victories at Boston on June 3 and at Detroit on June 8.We didnt do much against Dickey, Tigers manager Brad Ausmus said. We hit a couple of balls hard early and after that he settled in. He did a very nice job.Jesse Chavez got two outs in the eighth and Brett Cecil got the third. Bo Schultz finished for Toronto, which has won eight of 11 against Detroit.The Blue Jays took a 2-0 led against Anibal Sanchez (5-10) in the second when catcher Josh Thole hit a bases-loaded single. For Thole, the RBI were his first since hitting a solo home run at Tampa Bay on April 4, Torontos second game of the season.Donaldson, the 2015 AL MVP, made it 5-0 with a two-out drive in the fourth, his 23rd.Saunders made it 6-1 with an RBI single off Kyle Ryan in the eighth.Sanchez lost his second straight start, allowing five runs and eight hits in four innings. He has lost seven straight decisions as a starter, including five in a row on the road.I want to make the second half strong, Sanchez said. Right now I can say I had the worst first half of my whole career. Ive got to continue working.Encarnacion sat out after dropping his appeal of a one-game suspension for making contact with umpire Vic Carapazza. An All-Star this season for the third time, Encarnacion was suspended for bumping Carapazzas shoulder after being ejected at the end of the first inning in Torontos 19-inning loss to Cleveland on July 1.THIS IS 40Toronto continued its 40th season celebrations with a pregame ceremony honoring several former Blue Jays, including Hall of Famer Roberto Alomar, slugger Joe Carter and two-time World Series-winning manager Cito Gaston.TRAINERS ROOMTigers: OF J.D. Martinez (right elbow) is taking swings but is still a few weeks away from a return, Ausmus said.Blue Jays: Donaldson started at DH for the second straight day, with Darwin Barney at 3B.UP NEXTTigers: Following the All-Star break, RHP Justin Verlander (8-6, 4.07) starts the opener of a three-game home series against Kansas City. Verlander has won once in his past four starts.Blue Jays: Toronto heads on the road after the All-Star break, with RHP Marcus Stroman (7-4, 4.89) starting the opener of a three-game series at Oakland. Stroman allowed two runs in eight innings to beat Kansas City on July 6. Cheap Nike Shox For Sale . Third-seeded Murray had the easiest path to victory on New Years Eve, barely breaking a sweat during his 6-0, 6-0 win over 2,129th-ranked Qatari wildcard recipient Mousa Shanan Zayed. Nike Shox Clearance Sale . How great will be revealed in the next couple of days at the board of governors meeting in Pebble Beach, Calif. http://www.cheapnikeshox.us/ . Once again Jordan Cieciwa (@FitCityJordan) and I (@LynchOnSports) go head to head in our picks. Last weekend at UFC Fight Night 32 my #TeamLynch got the best of #TeamJC by a score of 9-6. Let us know which side youre on for UFC 167 use the hashtag #TeamLynch or #TeamJC on Twitter. LSU Preview CapsuleBy The Associated Press=LSULast season: 19-14.Nickname: Tigers.Coach: Johnny Jones.Conference: Southeastern.Whos gone: F Ben Simmons, G Keith Hornsby, G Tim Quarterman.Whos back: G Antonio Blakeney. LSUs third-leading scorer last season at 12.6 points per game; F Craig Victor. Junior Forward averaged 11.5 points and 5.6 rebounds last season; G Brandon Sampson. Showed potential as a freshman who started five games.Whos new: C-F Duop Reath. The 6-foot-10 junior college transfer is a rim protector on defense who can run the court and has some offensive skillls as well. Cheap Nike Shox China. He provides an inside presence LSU lacked last season. Freshman G Skylar Mays and 6-6 F Wade Sims are Baton Rouge-area recruits who could make immediate contributions.The Skinny: Expectations are low following the departure of Ben Simmons, the No. 1 overall NBA pick this summer. Jones can only hope team chemistry improves and that a number of players emerging from Simmons shadow turn out to be better than everyone thought. ' ' '