Tag: Yankees

Oct 8, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; Toronto Blue Jays right fielder George Springer (4) celebrates after hitting a double during the first inning against the New York Yankees during game four of the ALDS round for the 2025 MLB playoffs at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Some birds aren’t meant to be caged, especially if they’re Blue Jays buzzing around the Bronx. 

The New York Yankees’ 2025 season is over far earlier than expected after they were eliminated in Game 4 of the ALDS by the Toronto Blue Jays 5-2 on Wednesday night at Yankee Stadium. In a bullpen game in which they faced eight different Toronto pitchers, the Bronx Bombers could only muster six hits, ensuring their year ended with a whimper. 

The Blue Jays are winners of their first postseason series and off to their first ALCS since 2016, where they will face either the Seattle Mariners or Detroit Tigers. A winner-take-all Game 5 of their ALDS is Friday in Seattle. 

Four different Blue Jays drove in runs, though Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s inclusion was the most predictable of the bunch. The slugging first baseman put his side ahead within the game’s first three batters against New York’s rookie phenom, Cam Schlittler.

After George Springer’s lead-off double, Guerrero lined a single the other way to right for his ninth RBI of the series. 

While Schlittler could not replicate the magic of his heroics from Game 3 of the Wild Card Series against the Boston Red Sox, in which he went eight shutout innings with 12 strikeouts, he still hung tough. The 24-year-old went 6.1 innings, allowing two runs on eight hits with two strikeouts and no walks. 

Ryan McMahon drew the Yankees level with a solo home run in the third against Mason Fluharty, but it would be their last hit until the seventh inning. 

Meanwhile, the Blue Jays took the lead in the fifth. Following lead-off singles from Ernie Clement, who went 2-for-3 in Game 4, and Andres Gimenez, Springer drove in the go-ahead run with a sacrifice fly. 

That same combination of Clement and Gimenez teamed up to create some breathing space for the Blue Jays in the seventh. Following Clement’s single with one out, Gimenez’s sharp grounder to second looked destined to be an inning-ending double play, but Jazz Chisholm could not get his glove, which was in the forehand position, over quickly enough, and it glanged off his leather and into the outfield to put runners at the corner. 

Yankees manager Aaron Boone gave Schlittler the hook for former closer Devin Williams, who got Springer swinging for the second out while Gimenez stole second. But Nathan Lukes, who spent a decade in the minors, came through with a liner over shortstop to score a pair. 

Toronto added a fifth in the eighth after Alejandro Kirk snuck a double past a diving Rosario, who pinch-hit for the defensively superior Ryan McMahon just a half-inning earlier. Myles Straw drove him in with a one-out single. 

The Yankees stranded seven men on base between the sixth and eighth innings. The final stanza of that stretch saw them load the bases with two outs against Blue Jays closer Jeff Hoffman, only for Austin Wells to fly out to left on the first pitch he saw. 

Aaron Judge picked up a consolation RBI with two outs in the ninth, his sixth of the series. 

For more on the Yankees, visit AMNY.com

Oct 7, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge (99) hits a three-run home run in the fourth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays during game three of the ALDS round for the 2025 MLB playoffs at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

BRONX, NY — The Yankees saved their season from certain doom, overturning a 6-1 deficit by scoring eight unanswered runs to defeat the Toronto Blue Jays 9-6 in Game 3 of the ALDS on Tuesday night in the Bronx. 

By halving its deficit in the best-of-five series, New York has an opportunity to knot things up on Wednesday night at Yankee Stadium. 

The Yankees overturned their five-run, third-inning deficit within one inning, punctuated by a rare, signature Aaron Judge postseason moment — a three-run, game-tying home run off the left-field foul pole in the bottom of the fourth.

Judge, whose postseason performances have been scrutinized mercilessly over the last eight years, went 3-for-4 with four RBI.

“It’s great. I’m just trying to do my job,” Judge said. “It’s just what I’ve been trying to do all year. Not try to do too much. Guys on base, try to drive them in. No one on base, try to get a rally going. That’s all you can do, especially in front of our fans. They were getting a little restless down 6-1, but they erupted when we tied it up and took the lead.”

Down three following an RBI double from Judge and a sacrifice fly from Giancarlo Stanton in the third, Austin Wells reached second when Blue Jays third baseman Addison Barger dropped his pop-up down the left-field line with one out in the fourth. Trent Grisham walked before Judge turned on an inside, 0-2, 99.7-mph fastball from reliever Luis Varland that stayed fair by mere inches.

“I felt like I made good contact,” Judge said. “I thought we had a chance. You just never know with the wind if it’s going to push it foul, if it’s going to keep curving or not. But I guess a couple ghosts out there in Monument Park helped keep that fair.”

The entirety of Yankee Stadium froze as the liner seared down the line, then exploded into pandemonium as Judge’s missile hit its target. The imposing slugger dropped his bat and raised his hand toward his dugout as he began his trip around the bases.

Jazz Chisholm got one more on Varland in the fifth when he cracked a no-doubter off the second deck in right field to make it a 7-6 game — the Yankees’ first lead of the ALDS after being outscored 23-8 in the first two games. Austin Wells made it a two-run game with a two-out single, scoring Amed Rosario from second. 

“All I was thinking was ‘we gotta win this game,’” Chisholm said. “That’s all that was really going through my head the whole game.”

Judge was intentionally walked with one out in the sixth and moved to third when a Bellinger liner to right was misplayed by Anthony Santander. He scored on Ben Rice’s sacrifice fly. 

The rally revived a Yankees team that looked as good as dead in the third after starting pitcher Carlos Rodon imploded. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. continued to haunt the Bronx Bombers when he hit his third home run in as many games in this ALDS, a two-run shot in the first inning. 

Toronto then plated four in the third off Rodon. Daulton Varsho’s blooper clanged off the heel of Cody Bellinger’s glove to score Davis Schneider on a sleeping Jazz Chisholm, whose back was turned while the Blue Jays’ left fielder got a late start rounding third.

Ernie Clement added one more with a single before Anthony Santander drove in two more with a one-bagger. Rodon’s night was done after just 2.1 innings, as all six runs were earned on six hits.

For more on the Yankees, visit AMNY.com

Oct 5, 2025; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Trey Yesavage (39) reacts after a strikeout in the fourth inning against the New York Yankees during game two of the ALDS round for the 2025 MLB playoffs at Rogers Centre. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Sousa-Imagn Images

For as remarkable as Cam Schlittler’s Wild Card-clinching performance was for the Yankees, Trey Yesavage’s postseason debut against them on Sunday evening was even better. 

The Bronx Bombers were befuddled by the Toronto Blue Jays’ 22-year-old rookie, who had just three pro starts under his belt before Game 2 of the ALDS at Rogers Center. Within two hours, he became a household name, as Toronto flew away with a X-X victory. 

Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s grand slam headlined a six-run fourth inning for the Blue Jays, while Daulton Varsho went 4-for-4 with two home runs, two doubles, and four RBI. Ernie Clement drove in three of his own. 

For the second time in five days, the Yankees’ season teeters on the brink. After a 10-1 drubbing in Game 1 in Toronto, one more loss marks the end of the road for Aaron Boone’s men, who return to the Bronx for Game 3 on Tuesday night. 

Yesavage, the Blue Jays’ top overall prospect, struck out 11 batters over 5.1 shutout, hitless innings. It included a span of six consecutive punchouts between the third and fourth innings, giving him 10 on the day and Toronto’s postseason single-game strikeout record before even toeing the rubber for the fifth. 

Blue Jays bats, meanwhile, made quick work of Yankees ace Max Fried, who got a hard-luck no-decision against the Red Sox and their ace, Garrett Crochet, in Game 1 of the Wild Card Series. He was not nearly as competitive on Sunday. 

The southpaw lasted just three innings plus two batters, allowing seven runs on eight hits with one strikeout and a pair of walks. 

As they did on Saturday night, the Blue Jays got the party started instantaneously when Clement went down and pulled a first-pitch changeup over the left-field wall for a quick 2-0 lead. 

Alejandro Kirk’s RBI groundout in the third made it a 3-0 game with two outs, but Toronto squeaked out two more runs thanks to Varsho’s double and Clement’s third RBI of the day, a single left. 

Fried allowed a lead-off single to Andres Gimenez before walking Myles Straw, which spelled the end of his day. Boone went to Will Warren, but it only got worse. George Springer walked, and two batters later, Guerrero launched a 2-1 fastball 415 feet for a back-breaking grand slam to make it 9-0. 

Two batters later, it was 11-0, as Varsho took Warren 407 feet out to right-center field. 

By the time the Yankees recorded their first hit of the night, it was already 12-0. Aaron Judge beat out an infield single just two batters after Yesavage was removed from the game. Cody Bellinger went deep to put New York on the board. 

Following George Springer’s home run to make it 13-2, the Yankees reeled off five unanswered runs, but only to make the scoreline appear more respectable than it actually was. 

For more on the Yankees, visit AMNY.com 

Oct 2, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees pitcher Cam Schlittler (31) reacts after striking out a Boston Red Sox batter in the fifth inning during game three of the Wildcard round for the 2025 MLB playoffs at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

BRONX, NY — Cam Schlittler has officially arrived, and the New York Yankees are headed to the American League Divisional Series. 

Combined with a decisive four-run fourth inning from the offense, the 24-year-old rookie right-hander shut down the Boston Red Sox in the winner-take-all Game 3 of the AL Wild Card Series on Thursday night at Yankee Stadium, posting eight shutout innings while allowing just five hits with 12 strikeouts in New York’s 4-0 victory over their hated rivals.

“You come up through the Yankees organization, they’re a winning team,” Schlittler said. “To be able to experience this for the first time as a rookie is a great feeling.”

It was not just the first time in Schlittler’s MLB career (14 regular-season starts) that he completed eight innings, but the first time he went that far into a start since joining the Yankees’ organization in 2023. 

“I don’t think I’ve ever pitched eight innings,” Schlittler told amNewYork. “As a starter, you’re trying to go six, seven innings. If you can get past that, that’s where you get paid. So for me, I was just trying to go out there and put this team in a position to win.”

With his gem comes the breaking of a significant snide for the Yankees. They had lost each of their previous three postseason meetings to the Red Sox — their last win coming in the 2003 ALCS when now-manager Aaron Boone hit a walk-off home run in Game 7.

The Yankees became the first team in the current postseason format to overturn a 1-0 Wild Card Series deficit to come back and win it. 

There’s no time to rest. The Bronx Bombers are on their way to Toronto to meet the No. 1 seed Blue Jays, who won the AL East over New York via a tiebreaker, on Saturday for Game 1 of the ALDS. 

Thursday night, though, will belong to Schlittler. The fireballing rookie was the clear victor in the battle of the rookies against Boston’s Connelly Early in what was only the second winner-take-all postseason game to feature two rookie starters. The first came in Game 7 of the 2020 NLCS between Dustin May of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Ian Anderson of the Atlanta Braves. 

A Walpole, MA native who grew up in a Red Sox family, Schlittler tormented his old boyhood club with untouchable stuff. He recorded six pitches of 100-plus mph in the first inning alone, gave up only two Masataka Yoshida singles across the first four innings, and continuously painted heat as though he was serving it in slow motion. 

“I probably threw a couple extra hundreds there,” Schlittler said. “Everyone’s loud. They told me the first inning was going to be loud. So it was natural adrenaline. But I don’t think I overdid myself.”

It made the Yankees’ monster fourth inning, which knocked Early out early, feel like the series had been clinched, which it was. 

It appeared as though it would start innocuously enough. Cody Bellinger hit a lazy fly ball into shallow right-center. But the diving center fielder, Ceddanne Rafaela, muffed the attempt — much like left fielder Jarren Duran flubbed Aaron Judge’s fly ball in Game 2 that gave the Yankees a 3-2 lead in the fifth — allowing Bellinger to advance to second.

After Giancarlo Stanton’s walk and with one out, trade-deadline acquisition Amed Rosario punched a single through to left to score Bellinger and break the ice in Game 3. 

Jazz Chisholm followed with a single hit too hard to score the slow-footed Stanton, which loaded the bases. Volpe singled to double the Yankees’ lead before Austin Wells’ 100-mph grounder clanged off the glove of first baseman Nathaniel Lowe — the second major Boston miscue of the inning — to bring in two more and give the hosts a two-run cushion.

Three of the four runs were charged to Early, who had a surprisingly long leash before he was pulled with two outs in that fateful inning. The 23-year-old lefty finished with three of the four runs earned on his ledger while allowing six hits with six strikeouts and a walk. 

“We needed to be perfect tonight because [Schlittler] was perfect,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. “The stuff was outstanding. He was under control. That was electric.”

Schlittler never flinched with the lead. He struck out three in the fifth while working out of a first-and-second jam, punched out another two in the sixth, then ended the seventh by getting Wilyer Abreu whiffing at a 98-mph fastball.

“That was impressive, but he’s been our secret weapon all year,” Judge said. “This guy has been impressive for us. The way he can handle the strike zone, he can run it up to 100 mph, but has a great feel for all his pitches. No moment is too big for him. He got a standing ovation coming off the mound, but he had his head down and was locked in, didn’t even know what was going on.”

Initially believed to be the end of his night, Yankee Stadium erupted into a standing ovation when Schlittler emerged from the dugout for the eighth. 

His brilliance remained undimmed even after passing the century mark of pitch count. He got Romy Gonzalez swinging on a 97-mph fastball, coaxed a pop out from Jarren Duran in foul territory that was caught by third baseman Ryan McMahon while flipping into the Red Sox’s dugout, then got Trevor Story to ground out to short. 

“Every time he’s taken the ball, I feel so good about him and he’s capable of doing anything,” Boone said. “Results aside… I knew it wasn’t going to be too big for him. What a performance.”

For more on the Yankees, visit AMNY.com

Sep 28, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees first baseman Ben Rice (22) celebrates at home plate with outfielder Aaron Judge (99) after hitting a solo home run against the Baltimore Orioles during the first inning at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: John Jones-Imagn Images

Ben Rice’s second home run of the day, a solo shot in the bottom of the eighth inning, lifted the New York Yankees to a vital 3-2 victory over the Baltimore Orioles on the last day of the season.

But eight straight wins to end the year still weren’t enough to win the division. 

Up in Toronto, the Blue Jays cracked the Tampa Bay Rays 13-4 to clinch their first American League East title since 2015, thanks to their tiebreaker over the Yankees. Both teams finished with identical 94-68 records. 

While the Blue Jays held on to the No. 1 overall seed in the American League, which grants them a bye into the ALDS, the Yankees will host the Boston Red Sox in the best-of-three Wild Card Series beginning Tuesday night in the Bronx. 

The Orioles’ runs came from back-to-back home runs in the top of the fourth inning by Jordan Westburg and Gunnar Henderson off Yankees starter Luis Gil.

It was the only damage conceded by New York’s righty, who yielded three hits with two walks and two strikeouts in five innings pitched. 

Baltimore’s back-to-back jacks overturned Rice’s 25th home run of the season, which gave the Yankees a one-run lead at the jump in the bottom of the first. 

Giancarlo Stanton tied the game with an RBI single in the bottom of the fourth off Orioles starter Kyle Bradish, who struck out eight Yankees in his four frames of work. The veteran right-hander, who returned in August from Tommy John surgery, ended his season with an impressive 2.53 ERA. 

Aaron Judge put the bow on another brilliant season, which will end in strong MVP consideration — potentially his third. He wrapped up the American League batting title with a .331 average and became just the third player in MLB history (Jimmie Foxx, Mickey Mantle) to win a batting title and hit more than 50 home runs in a season. 

For more on the Yankees, visit AMNY.com