If the Blue Jays are to snap their losing streak at Yankee Stadium it will apparently take more than just Jose Bautista hitting home runs. Although the team's star slugger hit two home runs and drove in four runs, a bad start by Mark Buehrle put Toronto in a hole that they were never able to climb out of.
The game got started in a big way right off the bat in the top of the first for the Blue Jays. Singles by Jose Reyes and Melky Cabrera set up a Jose Bautista home run to left field off a Hiroki Kuroda fastball. The inning was extended when Derek Jeter did his best pylon impression and let a Juan Francisco single roll right by him, but Colby Rasmus eventually went down swinging on a tough splitter to end the first.
The Evil Empire got two runs back in the second inning after a pair of singles and a walk loaded the bases for a Brian Roberts infield single to Munenori Kawasaki that scored a run. That was followed by a sacrifice fly that scored Chase Headley before some solid Anthony Gose defence and slowness down the line by Derek Jeter ended the inning.
The scoring continued in the third with Jose Bautista once again launching a homer to left field on a Kuroda slider, which increased his total to 20 on the season. The solo shot was matched in the bottom half of the inning by Carlos Beltran who destroyed a Mark Buehrle changeup to left field. It started to look like neither team was aware of the fact that it's much easier to hit home runs to the right field porch in Yankee Stadium rather than left field. That was until Ichiro stepped up to the plate and smashed a three-run home run to right off an ugly curveball from Buehrle to make it 6-4 for the Yankees. There was a combined 15 hits by both teams by the time the third inning was over, which is slightly more offence than the Royals and Indians game on Thursday where it took five innings to just get one hit.
Things calmed down after that....and by calmed down I mean nothing else happened and the game ended 6-4. Mark Buehrle only went the first three innings allowing six runs on nine hits, while throwing 67 pitches. Todd Redmond relieved him in the fourth and also went three innings striking out four. Brett Cecil and Dustin McGowan each took an inning after that and struck out one hitter apiece.
On the Yankees side of the ledger, Hiroki Kuroda went 5.2 innings allowing the four earned runs on eight hits. Relievers David Huff, Shawn Kelley, Dellin Betances, and closer David Robertson sealed the deal for New York allowing a total of two hits collectively. Somehow this seriously undermanned Yankee squad is still playing good baseball and going head to head with every team in the AL East.
Only Jose Bautista (.351 WPA) qualifies for Jay of the Day while Suckage Jays are Mark Buehrle (-.517), Juan Francisco (-.109), and Colby Rasmus (-.107).
Source: FanGraphs
Tomorrow sees Drew Hutchison attempting to right the ship against newly acquired Yankee Chris Capuano. Capuano appeared in 28 games for the Red Sox this year before being DFA'ed and then released, eventually signing with the Rockies. On Thursday the Yankees sent cash to Colorado for the lefty, who will become the only southpaw currently in the Yankees rotation.