Yankees Fall Short Against Blue Jays
Toronto—It wasn’t quite death by a thousand paper cuts for the Yankees, but it felt pretty close.
A series of mishaps turned what was a two-run lead into a two-run deficit in just six innings. Frustrating doesn’t even begin to cover it; the Yankees lost to the Blue Jays 5-4 at a packed Rogers Center on Monday night, a game marked by a couple of costly errors.
Cody Bellinger was a bright spot, running for the Yankees (who are now 48-36) and providing some spark in the eighth inning. But despite those efforts, they couldn’t capitalize and ultimately fell to the Blue Jays, who improved to 46-38, at the start of this four-game series.
Entering the sixth, the Yankees held a 3-1 advantage, but then Davis Schneider led off the inning with a double that ended Carlos Rodon’s night. It seemed like everything would stay in control until a ground ball hit by Miles Straw took a weird bounce, allowing Schneider to advance after the throw went awry. This miscue let the Blue Jays close the gap to 3-2.
Things continued to unravel when Ernie Clement stepped up next. His grounder, coupled with another backhand attempt by Volpe, allowed the game to be tied up—not exactly what the Yankees had in mind.
Then came Jonathan Roashga, who faced George Springer, who loaded the bases thanks to a catcher interference call. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. took full advantage, smashing a two-run hit that flipped the script and put the Blue Jays ahead 5-3.
Max Scherzer, making only his third start of the year after dealing with some thumb issues, dominated early on, striking out the first nine Yankees he faced until Trent Grisham got a single in the fourth to break that streak.
After some back and forth, including a two-run homer by Chisholm, the Yankees managed a glimmer of hope when Giancarlo Stanton hit an RBI single, cutting the deficit to 3-1 in the sixth.
The Yankees had their best chance in the eighth, highlighted by Bellinger’s home run. However, they faced tough decisions when the Blue Jays intentionally walked Aaron Judge for the second time. Chisholm followed by walking Stanton, who then advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt. Yet, just when it seemed they might rally, Ben Rice ended the threat with a shot that fell into the outfield.
