Big Comeback, Jays Beat Yankees

Yankees 9 Blue Jays 10

My two favourite people in the world, at this moment, are Lourdes Gurriel and Teoscar Hernandez. Sure it is Father’s Day, but those kids come in third (three-way tie).

Lourdes hit a grand slam in the sixth, making a runaway (8-3) a ball game again.

And Teoscar hit a three-run shot in the eighth, putting us ahead.

The game started well. Vladimir Guerrero hit a two-run homer in the first inning to give us our first lead since the top of the fourth of game one of this series.

After that, things went bad.

Yusei Kikuchi walked Aaron Judge and hit Josh Donaldson (Josh was not happy) in the first but got out of the inning without a run-scoring, helped by Kirk picking Donaldson off at first.

In the second, Gleyber Torres started things off with a home run. And Yusei hit Aaron Hicks, but a strikeout and a strikeout/throwout (Kirk had a day behind the plate).

The third featured another walk and a Donaldson home run (just when Yusei seemed to be trusting his fastball. He got out of the fourth without a run-scoring.

And Adam Cimber started the fifth. Adam didn’t have his usual great outing. A walk, a bunt single, double and another double scored 3 for the Yankees.

Max Castillo got into his first MLB game in the sixth and gave up home runs to the first two batters he faced. We were down 8-3, and things looked bleak.

But the homers from Lourdes and Teoscar got us back on top.

I skipped a George Springer solo homer in the sixth, his first hit since Monday.

But just because we were up by two, it wasn’t over.

Yimi Garcia got through the seventh with a popup and two strikeouts. He got a strikeout to start the eighth and, when the Yankees pinch-hit with Anthony Rizzo, Charlie went to Tim Mayza.

As it turned out, it was a mistake. Rizzo homered, making it a one-run game. And a single (being fair Vlad dove for it and deflected it away from Espinal, who could have had a fairly easy play. Vlad hurt himself on the dive, making Rogers Stadium the quietest it has been all weekend, but he stayed in the game) and a walk put the tying run on second.

Jordan Romano comes in and strands the runners. The ninth went strikeout (Donaldson), walk (Stanton), fly-out (Torres), and Hicks (single). Tying run second and Rizzo up again.

Jordan went 3-2 on Rizzo (a couple of very close calls didn’t go our way, which was part of the story of the weekend), and I was thinking maybe walk Rizzo. He didn’t, and Rizzo ground out to Bo Bichette.

I am very fond of Romano.

Jays of the Day: Romano (.376 WPA, 5 out save), Hernandez (.348), and Gurriel (.205). Let’s give one to Kirk for the .077 and two runners thrown out on the bases.

Suckage: Mayza (-.246), Cimber (-.241), Yikuchi (-.121).

I am currently sacrificing a rum to the baseball gods, who didn’t deserve all the nasty things I was saying about them the last three days.