Jays make quest tougher for Yanks
NEW YORK— Red Sox-Yankees in late September — as sure a thing as exists for baseball’s schedule makers. American League East powers, historic foes, duking it out for a division title.
Not this time. With Boston’s iron grip on the best record in the majors, New York is going into the rivalry’s last regularseason series, starting Tuesday afternoon, with a rather mundane mantra.
“Trying to get right,” manager Aaron Boone said.
Dellin Betances blew a onerun lead in the eighth inning, sending the Yankees stumbling into their mid-week set against baseball’s top team with a 3-2 loss to the Blue Jays on Sunday.
Andrew McCutchen hit his fourth homer with the Yankees on the second pitch from Blue Jays starter Thomas Pannone, and Didi Gregorius added his RBI later that inning. Pannone faced the minimum over the next five innings, though, and then stranded two runners in the seventh. He allowed four hits and two runs over seven innings, striking out six on the way to his third win. The soft-tossing rookie lefthander was making his fourth start, including impressive outings against the Orioles and AL Central-champion Indians.
“They ambushed him, but I thought he was really good,” Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said of Pannone. “He worked himself out of it and kept the game in check.”
Jays rookie catcher Reese McGuire notched his first major-league RBI in the third with a double that cut New York’s lead to 2-1.
In the eighth, Betances allowed hits to four of his first five batters, including a tying single by pinch-hitter Rowdy Tellez and a go-ahead double by Randal Grichuk. Betances has lost in two of his past three appearances.
“This one’s on me,” Betances said. “I take the blame.”
Blue Jays closer Ken Giles struck out Gary Sanchez with a runner on to wrap up his second save in two days. The hardthrowing right-hander has 10 saves since he was acquired from Houston for Roberto Osuna, and 22 overall this season.
The Yankees, who have lost 10 of 17, remain 11⁄ games up on Oakland for the top AL wild card after the A’s.
“We have to play better, clearly,” Boone said. “But the history of this game is littered with stories of teams that went into the playoffs in different scenarios — limping, playing great. The bottom line is you have to be playing right when it counts.”
The Red Sox are assured of no worse than a wild card, lead the AL East by 111⁄ games and would clinch the division with one more win. The Yankees hope Aaron Judge can help keep Boston’s bubbly corked. Boone said the all-star slugger could return to the lineup during the series. Judge hasn’t been cleared to hit against live pitching since breaking his right wrist July 26, though he’s been hitting off a high-velocity pitching machine and feels no discomfort while swinging. The Yankees are 26-22 without him.