Of migraines, feels ‘good’
The bottom of the sixth inning Saturday afternoon at the Stadium lasted nearly 40 minutes. The Yankees saw 55 pitches, with 12 batters coming to the plate in unrelenting at-bat after unrelenting at-bat. By the time the Blue Jays finally recorded the third out, the Yankees had scored seven runs and all but one batter in their lineup had reached base. The Yanks then coasted to a 9-1 victory over Toronto with the sun shining in the Bronx. Lefthander Jordan Montgomery put forth his best performance of 2018, hurling six innings of one-run ball on 91 pitches. The Yankees chased Blue Jays starter Marcus Stroman from the game in that sixth inning. The righthander allowed eight runs, six of them earned, on five hits and four walks while striking out five. The Bombers (10-9) are back above .500. treatment and keep getting on the field and keep feeling improvement.
“Still got room for improvement, but it feels better.”
Drury ran the bases and fielded ground balls Saturday morning but didn’t hit because the Yankees held a little-league parade at the Stadium during pregame.
“He’s got to continue to progress,” Boone said. “But I think he’s very, very close to making a decision one way or the other whether we want to send him out (on a rehab assignment) and start getting a couple of games in and some at-bats. I do think that decision is potentially really close. Again, hopefully he just gets through these next couple days and we’re in that position.”
Aaron Judge opened scoring in the third inning with a gargantuan two-run blast to left field. Stroman grooved a 3-0 two-seam fastball on the inner half of the plate, and Judge had the green light. He smoked the pitch down the left-field line, tucking it inside the foul pole and into the second deck for his sixth homer of the season and third in his last five games. This one traveled 443 feet. It was the first time in his career he homered in a 3-0 count.
The sixth inning. Didi Gregorius drove in the first run of the rally with an RBI single to right. A second run scored when Judge scampered home on Aaron Hicks’ short grounder and Toronto catcher Luke Maile was unable to squeeze an accurate toss from Stroman. Three more runs came around on Miguel Andujar’s bases-clearing double into the left-center-field gap. Brett Gardner, who scored the first run of the explosion, delivered an RBI sac fly in his second at-bat of the inning. Judge then singled home the seventh and final run of the inning with a line drive to left.
Judge, who drove in three runs and also became the fastest player to 62 career homers. (He was also the fastest to 60 and 61. This is becoming a trend.) USA TODAY SPORTS it up more on the running side” next week and “do more agility stuff.” “I’m getting better,” Bird said. Bird hopes to get some live atbats the week of May 1 — either in minor-league games or extended spring training.
“That’ll just come with time next week, see how next week goes, and then come up with more of a game plan after that,” Bird said.
Bird battled right foot and ankle problems virtually all of last season after fouling a ball off his foot in spring training. This more recent issue surfaced in March, and Bird has yet to play in a regular-season game in 2018. But less than a month
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“He’s better (than I thought). No question, he’s better. I knew 52 home runs, Rookie of the Year, a guy that gets on over 40 percent of time. So I understand he’s an elite-level hitter (when) you look at those numbers. But I’m so impressed with how well he knows himself and how he develops a game plan going into the game. I think he’s very in tune with the mechanics of his swing, which I’m sure is more of a challenge for a guy that size. He’s clearly, to me, one of the best players in the league. …You better execute when you’re facing him or you’re going to be in trouble.” after surgery that removed a bone spur in the right ankle, Bird already feels healthier than he did in 2017.
“Stability,” Bird said of the biggest difference he feels. “Like I can land on my front foot.”
YANKEES VS. BLUE JAYS
Sunday, 1:05 p.m., at Yankee Stadium, YES, MLBN Luis Severino (3-1, 2.63) vs. Jaime Garcia (2-0, 3.86)