Game #150 New York Yankees (98-53) @ Toronto Blue Jays (59-91) - game recap

Randal Grichuk hit a 3-run HR in the 5th that proved to be the difference as the Blue Jays came from behind to defeat the Yankees 6-4

After getting spanked by the Yankees 13-3 last night, the Blue Jays look to win both series this week against two bitter division rivals (they took two of three from Boston already and won the opener of this series in a come from behind extra innings battle that was very costly with the loss of Tim Mayza to TJ surgery). Both teams opted to use openers today with righties Wilmer Font and Chad Green expected to pitch the 1st inning. Vlad got the full day off with Richard Urena at the hot corner today. Rowdy Tellez is apparently in the doghouse still as he remained out of the lineup for the second day in a row after being pulled from the game Friday for failing to hustle down to first on a ground out. Brandon Drury got the start there today. Derek Fisher also appears to be in the doghouse for poor defense with Billy McKinney starting in left. It's kind of refreshing to see Montoyo preaching accountability. Could the Blue Jays end the home stand with a win? Here is today's game recap.

Game Highlights:

• The Yankees opened the scoring in the top of the 1st as Aaron Judge smacked an opposite field shot to right
• Wilmer Font pitching line: 1IP 1H 1R (earned) 0BB 1K 14 pitches (11 for strikes); TJ Zeuch pitched the next 5.1 innings allowing 3 runs (2 earned) on 5 hits while walking 3 and striking out 5
• Chad Green pitching line: 1IP 1H 0R 0BB 1K 19 pitches (12 for strikes)
• The Blue Jays got one back in the bottom of the 2nd as Billy McKinney singled home Brandon Drury
• A batter later, Richard Urena doubled scoring McKinney
• The Yankees tied things up in the top of the 3rd as DJ LeMahieu doubled scoring Tyler Wade
• Two batters later, Didi Gregorius singled home LeMahieu
• The Blue Jays tied it in the bottom half of the inning as Randal Grichuk whacked a solo blast to right-center
• The Blue Jays took the lead in the bottom of the 5th as Grichuk hammered a 3-run bomb to the second deck in left also scoring Bo Bichette and Cavan Biggio
• The Yankees got one back on a fielding error by Richard Urena that allowed Austin Romine to score
• Ken Giles threw a perfect 9th for his 20th save of the season.
• Final score: Blue Jays 6 Yankees 4

My Take:

• TJ Zeuch held his own against a potent Yankees lineup, firing 5.1 innings and giving up 3 runs (2 earned) on 5 hits while walking 3 and striking out 5. Charlie Montoyo elected to use the opener after he saw Jacob Waguespack get beat up by Yankees batters. The strategy worked well today, but I'm more of a traditionalist and would have rather seen Zeuch start the game. Congrats to Zeuch on his first MLB W.
• Randal Grichuk earned his hefty contract in a big way Sunday, hitting a game-tying solo HR in the 3rd and absolutely crushing a 3-run bomb in the 5th to give the Blue Jays a 3-run lead they would not relinquish.
• Bo Bichette (2-4, run scored) and Billy McKinney, 1-3, walk, run scored, RBI also had great days at the plate
• During the broadcast, it was mentioned how the Blue Jays have rallied around Tim Mayza, who will soon be undergoing TJ surgery. Ryan Borucki and Clay Buchholz, who have both undergone the surgery, have reached out to the embattled Blue Jays reliever. It's great to see and shows the closeness of the team in a down year.
• The Blue Jays need 4 wins in their last dozen games to avoid 100 losses
• Up next, the Blue Jays hit the road for the final time this season. After an off-day/travel day tomorrow, they begin a three-game series in Baltimore. Neither team has announced their rotations for the series.