Bird finds his stroke vs. lefties

Greg Bird had just three at-bats against Steven Matz going into Saturday, but Aaron Boone wasn’t sure how much success the first baseman would have facing the Mets’ southpaw.

“I don’t think he had the greatest matchup with Matz,” Boone said afterward. “All those high fastballs.”

And Bird hadn’t been productive against lefties since returning from ankle surgery, going just 4-for-29 with a homer and three RBIs this season.

You would never know it from watching Bird in the Yankees’ 7-6 win over the Mets in The Bronx, a game in which he stroked an RBI double to center in the fourth, then ended Matz’s afternoon with a run-scoring single to right in the sixth.

“I’m feeling better and better,” Bird said of his approach vs. lefties. “It’s just a process. Little things come back and you figure out what you need to do to make it happen.”

Against Matz, Bird flied to left in the second then hit an 0-2 curveball over Matt den Dekker in center in a four-run fourth.

Giancarlo Stanton started the rally with an infield hit on a 3-0 pitch and was followed by Didi Gregorius’ run-scoring triple, a Miguel Andujar RBI double, then Bird’s blast.

In the sixth, Andujar hit a leadoff double to the opposite field and Bird knocked him in.

“He got on top of a ball that seemed up in the zone,” Boone said. “For two or three weeks, he’s had quality at-bats and is looking like that threat we know he is in the box. … It’s really encouraging.”

Since June 29, when Bird snapped out of a 2-for-23 stretch, the first baseman is 16-for-59 with three doubles and five homers.

When he does connect, the power has been there all year. Bird has just 33 hits this season, but 18 of them have gone for extra bases.

He hit seventh Saturday, in part because of a lefty starter, but Boone will no doubt consider bumping Bird up in the order if the production continues — regardless of who’s on the mound.

“I’m being more consistent,’’ Bird said. “I’ve said it a lot, but I’m getting my swing off consistently. You’ve got to be able to do it every day, with every pitch. I’m back in a groove over the last couple of weeks. It’s exciting.”