Stanton goes deep as Yanks pluck Jays
NEW YORK >> Giancarlo Stanton launched his first homer since missing nearly three months to injury, James Paxton won his 10th straight start and the Yankees beat the Toronto Blue Jays 7-2 Saturday.
New York manager Aaron Boone was ejected after another tangle with a rookie umpire, and the 101win Yankees got promising news shortly before first pitch when an MRI of Gleyber Torres’ achy right hamstring came back negative.
Two years after leading the majors with 59 homers for Miami, Stanton hit just his second of the season leading off the sixth against reliever Brock Stewart. He also had an RBI double in the fourth. Stanton has only played 12 games this year due to biceps, shoulder, calf and knee injuries. He was replaced defensively in the seventh inning to manage his workload.
The AL East champions entered with a major league-leading 294 homers.
Paxton (15-6) allowed an unearned run while pitching three-hit ball over six innings. The left-hander threw just 87 pitches and has a 2.25 ERA during his winning streak, the longest for a Yankees pitcher since Ron Guidry’s 11 in 1979.
Toronto batters struck out 15 times, including on their last five outs and 10 of their final 11 as shadows extended between the plate and the mound.
Boone watched nearly all of it from the clubhouse. The secondyear manager shouted profanities from the dugout at plate umpire Jeremie Rehak — a call-up from Triple-A — after Stanton struck out looking against T.J. Zeuch to end the first inning. Crew chief Joe West quickly booted Boone from third base, and Rehak also tossed Yankees hitting coach Marcus Thames.
It was the fifth ejection this year for Boone, including his memorable “savages” tirade at rookie umpire Brennan Miller in July — Yankees players routinely wear Tshirts commemorating the rant. New York was already peeved with West over his strike zone Friday night, when Brett Gardner argued animatedly after a called strike in the ninth.