It’s tough to follow a game that you should have won with a dull, listless performance. So it was for the Yankees as they fell 7-1 to the AL cellar rats, the Toronto Blue Jays. To the Blue Jays credit, they are now on a three-game winning streak and have held their opponents to a single run in each of those victories. It was just a matter of time before the Blue Jays started playing like the team many predicted to contend for the AL East and unfortunately the Yankees may have run into them at the wrong time.
Luis Severino, after his brilliant performance in Boston, let the bottom of Toronto’s batting order do the damage. In the second inning, he allowed a two-run homer to the number seven hitter, shortstop Ryan Goins, who is subbing for the injured Troy Tulowitzki. It would be the only runs Toronto would need on a quiet night for Yankee bats. Severino allowed another home run in the sixth inning to the number nine hitter, third baseman Chris Coghlan, a fill-in for the injured Josh Donaldson. Severino (2-2) lasted 5 2/3 innings, giving up 8 hits and 5 runs. He walked two and struck out 3.
Credit: Kathy Willens/AP
Reliever Luis Cessa took one for the team and finished the remaining 3 1/3 innings to provide rest for the weary Yankees bullpen. He did give up a two-run shot to Jose Bautista in the seventh inning but was otherwise effective.
Jacoby Ellsbury made a great play in the sixth inning with a leaping catch of a potential double. His momentum carried him into the centerfield wall. A runner on third scored on the sac fly, but then Ellsbury overthrew Aaron Judge on an attempt to get the ball back into the infield which allowed a runner on second to also score.
Greg Bird is lost at the plate. His latest 0-for-4 performance dropped his batting average to an even .100. He left 5 men on base. The Yankees continue to give him chances to turn it around, but when is enough? I’ve been in Bird’s corner but at some point, he needs to figure this out at Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, not New York, in order to restore his confidence. I had thought he was getting better swings in recent days but the results are not there. I am not ready to say ‘send him down today’ but it is probably not going to take too many more games of hitless results.
It was just one of those games. The Yankees have struggled against the Blue Jays in recent years as they are just 13-26 against Toronto since the start of the 2015 season. The loss dropped the Yankees (15-9) one game behind the Baltimore Orioles in the AL East. The O’s beat the Boston Red Sox 5-2 on Monday night to recapture sole possession of first place. But today, yesterday means nothing. The Yankees can still take this series and it starts today with timely hitting and precision pitching.
Prior to the game, the Yankees recalled Cessa to provide long relief insurance and optioned reliever Bryan Mitchell to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. Brendan Kuty of NJ.com had the best Twitter line: "Mitchell will likely share 1B duties with Refsnyder and Choi" in reference to Mitchell's one inning of work at first base on Sunday. Too funny!
With no offense to Jorge Mateo, my personal favorite for the future of center field at Yankee Stadium had quite a game on Sunday. Dustin Fowler, a strong candidate to eventually unseat Jacoby Ellsbury, hit for the cycle as the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders defeated the Indianapolis Indians (the Pittsburgh Pirates’ top farm club), 7-6.
In the bottom of the 11th inning, Fowler capped his memorable day with a walk-off home run, completing the cycle. For the game, the 22-year-old went 5-for-6 with 2 runs scored and 2 RBI’s. For the season, Fowler is batting .293 (24-for-82), 4 home runs, and 12 RBI’s. He is second on the team with a .914 OPS. He has also stolen two bases.
Fowler’s day:
1st Inning: Tripled to right.
3rd Inning: Grounded out to third.
5th Inning: Doubled to right, scoring Tyler Wade.
7th Inning: Singled to center.
9th Inning: Doubled to right.
11th Inning: Homered to right, no one on…RailRiders win!
It may have taken two extra innings, but what a way to cap hitting for the cycle! Congrats to Fowler for the terrific game. I look forward to the day when he is doing this in the Bronx.
Credit: Times Leader
I am a Yankees Homer but I can’t predict an AL championship for the Yankees yet. Granted, the team finished the month of April in a first-place tie with the Baltimore Orioles, but it’s still a very long season. The Yankees had a chance to bury the Orioles on Sunday and couldn’t do it. The ebbs and flows the season will ultimately predict the final standings. Let’s see how the team handles its first real stretch of difficulty. With the Chicago Cubs and Houston Astros looming on the horizon, adversity is on its way. The last time catcher Gary Sanchez started a game, the Yankees were 1-4. So let’s not start printing World Series tickets just yet. Through May 1st last year, the Yankees were 8-15. This season, they are 15-9 through the same date. If they finish the season, from this point forward, with the same number of wins and losses as last year, they are a 90-win team. I think this team can contend for a Wild Card spot but I am not ready to anoint them as potential division champions. I still expect Boston to play much better as the season progresses, particularly if they get David Price back. And I’ve learned to never underestimate Buck Showalter and the Baltimore Orioles. The charging Blue Jays also have the Yankees’ number. If the Yankees are still slugging it out for first place at the All-Star Break, then I’ll reconsider my forecast. But for now, I still feel the best case scenario is a Wild Card slot with the division championship a season or two away.
Have a great Tuesday! Today is a new day…time to beat these pesky Jays!
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Sorry for the Capatcha... Blame the Russians :)