ARLINGTON, Texas -- The Toronto Blue Jays didn't have many scoring chances after the first few innings Wednesday night against the Texas Rangers.

They didn't need many.

Toronto jumped on Texas starter Tyson Ross (1-1) for six runs in the first inning and hung on for a 7-5 victory over the Rangers.

The Blue Jays, who moved within a game of .500 for the ninth time this year, got all the offense they needed with their six two-out runs.

The big first marked the first time in eight games the Blue Jays had scored in the opening frame.

"It does a lot, obviously," said second baseman Darwin Barney, who capped the scoring in the first with a two-run homer. "That's how this game works. That's why they have shutdown innings. For some reason in baseball, guys tend to score the inning after a team scores. It was nice to get out in front. Guys could relax a little bit. They made a little run, but our bullpen's been so good."

Justin Smoak got the Jays on the board with an RBI single; and, two batters later, Steve Pearce added an RBI double. Ryan Goins followed with a two-run double before Barney's two-run homer to left.

Goins upped the lead to 7-0 with an RBI groundout in the third.

Joe Biagini (2-6) made those runs stand up for his first win since May 12 despite a Texas rally.

The Rangers got two back in the third on Shin-Soo Choo's homer. Joey Gallo's inside-the-park homer in the fifth trimmed Toronto's lead to four.

Texas chased Biagini in the sixth inning with a two-run single from Delino DeShields that made it 7-5.

The Toronto bullpen held on from there, though. Danny Barnes, Ryan Tepera and Roberto Osuna kept the Rangers off the board for the final three frames, with Osuna picking up his 19th save. The Rangers had nine hits over the first six innings but were hitless over the final three.

Biagini was charged with four runs on seven hits in 5 2/3 innings. He struck out five and walked one while snapping a four-game losing streak.

"Biag's record is no indication of how good he's pitched," Toronto manager John Gibbons said. "He had a tough one his last outing (seven runs in one inning). He's a ground-ball guy. He got a lot of those and got a good curveball. He was in the strike zone. When he's in the strike zone, he's awfully tough."

Ross, making his second start, lasted three innings and gave up seven runs on seven hits.

"I was up in the zone and falling behind hitters," said Ross, who made his first start for the Rangers last Friday. "Their bats were swinging and I was making mistakes over the plate. I had a long delay (because of offseason shoulder surgery), but I came out the last outing and was effective. I struggled here tonight, but it's a good lesson to learn from."

Texas did get six scoreless innings from its bullpen but couldn't overcome just the fifth start of Ross' career in which he allowed at least seven runs.

Pearce went 3-for-3 for the Jays, and Smoak was 2-for-5 with two runs. Kendrys Morales also had a pair of hits for the Jays, who finished with 11. The Rangers had nine hits, as Gallo went 3-for-4 with a pair of doubles in addition to the homer.

Gallo (.201 batting average) came into the game with no hits in his last 11 at-bats and hadn't had a multi-hit game in June before giving the Rangers a chance with his big night, which was highlighted by his 19th homer.

"I knew I had a little bit on it and it might make it out," he said. "As soon as it hit the wall and (Pearce) went down, I thought I might have a chance at scoring. It was pretty exciting. I just had my head down running."

NOTES: Toronto LF Steve Pearce left the game in the bottom of the fifth with a right knee contusion after hitting the wall on Joey Gallo's inside-the-park homer. X-rays were negative. ... The inside-the-park homer by Gallo was the eighth in Globe Life Park history and the first by a Texas player since Ryan Rua had one in 2015. ... Toronto put RHP Leonel Campos on the 10-day disabled list with a strained right groin and recalled RHP Cesar Valdez from Triple-A Buffalo.