With the hapless Yankees offense going up against the Blue Jays’ ace and the Yankees slumping pitching staff facing the behemoth Toronto offense, many feared that this game would be a disaster for the Yankees.
Although it seemed like this one would follow that path early, the Yankees’ offense mounted a comeback in the later innings, capped off by a big pinch-hit double from Clint Frazier.
Wade put himself into scoring position with a first-pitch steal, and Frazier ripped a double into the corner down the left-field line that allowed Wade to walk home, capping off the comeback and giving the Yankees a 6-5 lead.
The Yankees needed that comeback thanks to a so-so outing from starter Jordan Montgomery, who has been hit a bit by the regression monster.
With Joe Panik on first and two out, Santiago Espinal and Marcus Semien each singled to load the bases; the latter occurred on a soft ground ball with an xBA of just .250 that Gleyber Torres failed to barehand and could have conceivably been called an error.
Thanks to the Houdini act in the first inning and the defensive miscues in the fourth, Montgomery’s outing simultaneously looks worse than it does and could have been a lot worse.
Although limited to only three runs on five hits in the first six innings, the Yankees kept the pressure on Toronto starter Hyun Jin Ryu all night, posting a .276 xBA off eight hard-hit balls and working four walks in six innings.
Two innings later, Gittens got in on the action with his first Major League hit, a 439-foot, 108.5 mph homer that landed nowhere near foul territory.
Gittens then proceeded to ground out to third to end the frame — robbed of a hit by a slick defensive play by Santiago Espinal — but the Yankees had begun to inch their way back, 5-3.
Following a leadoff home run by Brett Gardner to bring them within one — a wall-scraper with an xBA of just .050 — LeMahieu doubled for his second hit of the day, putting the tying run on second.
This comeback was possible in large part due to the efforts of the bullpen, as Luis Cessa, Jonathan Loaisiga, Zack Britton, and Aroldis Chapman kept the Blue Jays off the scoreboard with 3.2 scoreless innings, despite the fact that they struck out only two while allowing four hits and two walks.
Loaisiga earned the win, improving to 6-2, while Tim Mayza fell to 1-1 and Chapman recorded his 13th save of the season.