Gleyber Torres hit a three-run homer and drove in five runs, leading the surging New York Yankees to a 5-3 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays on Wednesday afternoon at Yankee Stadium.
The Yankees beat the Blue Jays for the sixth time in nine meetings this year. New York also won for the 15th time in 17 games and has won at least 22 of its first 30 games for the ninth time in team history and first time since 2003.
Torres drove in at least five runs for the second time in the regular season. He drove in a career-high six runs Aug. 12, 2019, against the Baltimore Orioles.
Torres hit a 361-foot three-run homer that landed in the front row of the right field seats just over right fielder Teoscar Hernandez’s leaping try in the fourth off Jose Berrios (2-2). He then added a two-run single to center field off Trevor Richards that scored DJ LeMahieu and Anthony Rizzo.
Bo Bichette had three hits, but the Blue Jays scored their runs on outs and lost for the fourth consecutive game and ninth time in 14 games.
Hernandez hit an RBI groundout four batters in after New York starter Jameson Taillon (3-1) plunked Vladimir Guerrero on the elbow to load the bases. Toronto scored its second run in the sixth on a sacrifice fly by Matt Chapman but ran itself out of the inning when Alejandro Kirk overran second base after being initially called safe as shortstop Isiah Kiner-Falefa was charged with an error for a bobble.
George Springer hit a sacrifice fly in the ninth.
Taillon settled in after the rough start and allowed two runs on six hits in 5 1/3 innings. He struck out four and walked one.
One of Taillon’s strikeouts was against Guerrero to end the fourth. After Guerrero stranded Bichette on second, the first baseman broke his bat and smashed it over his leg.
Michael King followed Taillon and put two on in the seventh before being relieved by Clay Holmes, who got Guerrero to bounce into an inning-ending double play. Holmes also worked around Kiner-Falefa’s second error of the game in a scoreless eighth.
After allowing Springer’s sacrifice fly, Chapman struck out Bichette and retired Guerrero for his eighth save.
Berrios allowed five runs on five hits in 5 1/3 innings.
–Field Level Media
