Fading Yanks shut out for third straight game

The Yanks' postseason hopes kept fading as the Blue Jays blanked them, 3-0, their third straight shutout loss.

The New York Yankees’ offense has disappeared, and their playoffs chances have pretty much vanished, too.

Jose Bautista hit a threerun homer off Tyler Clippard in the eighth inning, and the Toronto Blue Jays beat the Yankees 3-0 Saturday.

New York has been shut out in three straight games for the first time July 2728, 1975. The Yankees, who have lost 10 of 13 following a seven-game winning streak, dropped 4 1/2 games back for the AL’s second wild card with eight games left and likely will miss the playoffs for the third time in four years.

The Yankees, blanked for an AL-high 13th time, haven’t scored since Donovan Solano’s two-run homer in the ninth inning of Wednesday’s win at Tampa Bay. New York has gone 0 for 16 with runners in scoring position in its last three games and stranded 20 runners.

Toronto, the AL wildcard leader, opened a twogame lead over Detroit.

Josh Donaldson singled with two outs in the eighth off Clippard (3-5), advanced on a wild pitch, and Edwin Encarnacion walked. Clippard fell behind 2-0 in the count and Bautista sent a fastball over the left-field wall, delighting the crowd of 47,828. Bautista reached 20 homers for the seventh straight season.

Jason Grilli (7-5) allowed a two-out triple to Ronald Torreyes in the eighth. Pinch-hitter Billy Butler fouled off three straight pitches, then swung past a 94 mph fastball. Grilli pumped his hands twice, pounded his glove and pumped his hands again.

Roberto Osuna pitched a one-hit ninth for his 35th save in 38 chances, completing a three-hitter.

Yankees starter CC Sabathia, 0-2 in his last six starts, allowed four hits and three walks in seven innings.

Toronto’s Marcus Stroman gave up one hit in seven innings — Aaron Hicks’ single in the second.

GIRARDI’S WALKOUT

Joe Girardi said he walked out of Friday’s post-game media session because he was upset by questions about his bullpen usage, not because the slumping Yankees lost ground in the AL wild card race and were eliminated from the AL East.

“That’s a sign of some of the questions I was asked,” Girardi said before Saturday’s game.

“There’s some things I don’t like. If I don’t like it, I’m not going to deal with it, bottom line.”

The Yankees lost 9-0 in Toronto on Friday, their ninth defeat in 12 games following a seven-game winning streak.