Second baseman Gleyber Torres led the Yankees to a league-leading 22nd win on Wednesday afternoon with another victory over the Toronto Blue Jays by a 5–3 margin.
Torres began the Bronx Bombers’ offensive night in the 4th inning on a 3-run homer to right field that scored DJ LeMahieu and Anthony Rizzo after they both singled earlier in the inning.
Rizzo and LeMahieu would cross the plate again on an RBI single from Torres in the 6th inning off the third pitch of righty Trevor Richards’ night — bringing the score to 5–2.
“I think all the guys are in the same place right now,” Torres said after the game. “This was a huge series, but we just tried to play, and not put too much pressure on ourselves.”
“At the end of the day, I am just trying to help my team win.”
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That 3-run lead was enough for the Pinstripes, who gave up just 3 hits for the remainder of the contest.
Righty Jameson Taillon, who boasts a 2.84 ERA on the season, got the win for the Yankees after pitching 5.1 innings, and striking out 4 batters. The team then cycled through Michael King, Clay Holmes and Aroldis Chapman on the mound in the latter half of the game.
The Blue Jays only 3 scores of the game came off a ground-ball fielder’s choice in the 1st inning, and a pair of sacrifice flies in the 6th and 9th innings.
Despite a brief rally for Toronto in the final inning, Chapman forced MVP-contender Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to pop out to Torres in a fitting end to the game where the second baseman carried the team’s offense.
Wednesday’s contest marked the 6th Yankee victory in 9 games against the Blue Jays this year. In the previous matchup between the 2 clubs on Tuesday, the team from Canada took a 2-run lead into the bottom of the 9th inning, only to see Aaron Judge hit a 3-run longball to secure the come-from-behind victory.
Yankee manager Aaron Boone spoke about the club’s success against Toronto, and highlighted the importance of preforming well against their AL East rivals.
“Anytime you can do well against a division opponent, that’s a good thing,” said Boone. “These games take on double importance — And especially when you’re talking about a team that we think is going to be really good as the season unfolds, and you’re going to be in competition with. There’s a long way to go, but it’s good that we’ve gotten off to a good start against them.”
The 2-game series sweep marks the 6th-straight series victory for the Bronx Bombers.
Wednesday’s game propelled the Yankees to a 22–8 record on the young season, which puts them atop the MLB standings, 1 game ahead of the 2nd-place Los Angeles Angels.
