Yankees 4, Blue Jays 5: Judge homered twice... but so did Bichette

This game seemed like it would be different when the Yankees scored in the first inning for the first time all season. However, it ended up like how several others have gone this year.

The series finale between the Yankees and Blue Jays ended in a 5-4 walkoff Blue Jays’ win on a Bo Bichette home run. How we got there has followed a pattern from several games this season.

On the pitching side of things, Corey Kluber was unspectacular once again, allowing three runs on six hits and two walks in his four innings. It wasn’t a complete disaster, but it also wasn’t great. Meanwhile, other than Aaron Judge, there wasn’t much going on for the offense. The Yankee slugger had a good day, hitting two home runs; however, the other eight hitters combined for just three other hits. Plus, a certain first baseman hit into a double play, as seemingly per usual. The bullpen was mostly solid, but couldn’t hang on all day, leading to the eventual loss in the series finale in Dunedin.

As mentioned things started out well enough. With one out in the first inning, Judge took a T.J. Zeuch, who was starting for a scratched Ross Stripling, pitch over the left field wall, giving the Yankees an early lead.

After Kluber labored a bit to get out of the first, the Blue Jays took the lead in the second. With Rowdy Tellez on first after a single, Alejandro Kirk homered off Kluber, putting Toronto in front. The next inning, Bichette added to their lead with the first homer of his big day.

However, it wouldn’t be long before the Yankees fought back and retook the lead. Judge started things off by topping his first inning effort. He hit his second solo home run of the day, smashing this one 426 feet. Brett Gardner followed that with a walk, and Gleyber Torres marked his return to the lineup with a double after that. Gio Urshela then plated them both with a single, putting the Yankees back in front.

The Yankees nearly lost the lead in the fifth inning when Cavan Biggio got himself into a rundown. Biggio got to third on a triple after a Judge miscue in the outfield, but he tried to do a little too much and attempted to advance to home, only to eventually get tagged out. The next inning, they wouldn’t get as lucky.

Jonathan Loaisiga had replaced Kluber to start the fifth, but he quickly loaded the bases with two singles and a hit by pitch in the sixth. After a force out at home, a wild pitch got by Kyle Higashioka, allowing a run to score to tie the game. Loaisiga did bounce back to keep any more runs from scoring, however.

After that, the Yankees got some solid bullpen efforts from Darren O’Day and Justin Wilson. They turned it over to Chad Green in the ninth. The first hitter Green faced was Bichette, and that would be the only batter he faced. The fourth pitch of the at bat was right down the middle and Bichette made good contact on it. The ball seemed like it was eventually going to die for a deep fly out, but it kept carrying and carrying, landed over the fence, and the Blue Jays had their walkoff win.

The Yankees do have an off day tomorrow. Hopefully, that gives them time to write up some new scripts for these games.

Box score.