The Yankees were on the wrong side of a three-homer night as they fell to the Toronto Blue Jays 6-4 on Wednesday night.
Here are some key takeaways …
– Gerrit Cole quickly retired the first two Blue Jays in the top of the first, including a Bo Bichette strikeout on a 98 mph fastball. But Vladimir Guerrero Jr. got to him, smashing a line-drive solo homer to center field. The ball actually was momentarily in Aaron Hicks’ glove, but as he made contact with the wall, the ball fell out and hit off of something beyond the fence. A crew chief’s review confirmed that it was indeed a homer, Guerrero’s second of the season.
– In the bottom of the second, Hicks accidentally stepped on Guerrero’s right hand while legging out a single at the first base bag. Guerrero’s right ring finger needed some bandaging to stop the bleeding, but he was able to stay in the game after working with trainers. And that hand looked just fine in the top of the third inning, as Guerrero launched his second home run of the game to left-center, giving the Jays a 3-0 lead.
– Jose Berrios kept the Yankees bats quiet through the first four innings. The Yankees put a pair of runners on with nobody out in the fourth, but a Gleyber Torres strikeout looking and a pair of groundouts ended the possible threat.
The Yankees finally got to him in the bottom of the fifth, when Anthony Rizzo jumped on a fastball for a solo home run. Next up, Aaron Judge connected on his first home run of the season, as back-to-back jacks brought the Bombers back within a run. Doubles from Josh Donaldson and DJ LeMahieu then tied the game, with the Yankee Stadium crowd fired up and back in the game.
– Cole pitched into the sixth inning, but with a runner in scorer position and his pitch count up to 85, the right-hander was pulled from the game. Chad Green got out of the inning, closing out Cole’s line at 5.2 innings, four hits, three earned runs, one walk and six strikeouts. Cole allowed two homers, but ended up without a decision.
-Green got into a jam in the seventh, but he looked to get out of it with a would-be double-play ball. However, Torres double-clutched the throw to first base, allowing the inning to continue. Jonathan Loaisiga came into the game with runners on the corners and two outs, but he allowed an RBI single to George Springer, giving the Jays a 4-3 lead.
– Guerrero Jr. wasn’t done yet, though. In the top of the eighth, he took Loaisiga way out to left for his third homer of the game, becoming the first ever Blue Jay to hit three home runs at Yankee Stadium. Matt Chapman added another run in the inning with an RBI hit, doubling up the Jays’ lead.
– Torres slashed a solo home run to right in the eighth to make it a two-run game, and pinch-hitter Giancarlo Stanton smashed a ball to left, but it died on the warning track.
In the ninth, Rizzo bunted for a base hit, but Judge went down swinging and Donaldson lined out to end the game.
Highlights
What’s next
The Yankees and Blue Jays finish out their four game series on Thursday night at 7:05 p.m.
Luis Severino will take the mound against fellow righty Kevin Gausman.