Led by the effervescent Vladimir Guerrero Jr., the Toronto Blue Jays found a way to both outsmart, and outlast the New York Yankees in Game 4 of the American League Division Series, winning 5-2, and taking the series 3-1. The Jays advance the American League Championship Series for the first time since 2016.
While Toronto opened this series flexing its muscle, they used guile in Game 4 to sneak past a Yankees team that fell back into a funk offensively in the biggest game of their season to date.
New York left 10 men on base in Game 4, and were a paltry 1-for-6 with runners in scoring position. Seven of those 10 stranded runners came in a three inning span between the sixth and eighth innings.
The biggest and best opportunities came and went for the Yankees in the seventh and eighth innings.
In the seventh, the Yankees had two runners aboard for Trent Grisham. All he had to do was get on base because Aaron Judge loomed on deck. In a 4-1 game, who knows what could happen if Judge comes up with the bases juiced, or two runners on and a run in.
Instead, Grishom popped up down the third base line, as the ball was caught Addison Barger against the tarp to get out of the jam.
In the eighth inning the Yankees were able to load the bases for Austin Wells, but the slugging catcher took the first pitch he saw and skied out to shallow left-center for the final out. The Yankees never really pushed again.
Tip your cap to Blue Jays manager John Schnieder. He used eight different pitchers in Game 4, choosing instead to go with an opener, rather than rely on a starting pitcher to get him four or five innings.
As a result, the Yankees were off-balance all night, managing only six hits.
The game really turned in the top of the seventh when Jazz Chishom misplayed a line drive by Andres Gimenez, as the ball skipped off his glove and into center field. Two batters later, Nathan Lukes made the Yankees pay with a two run single to make it 4-1.
The runs were charged to starter Cam Schilitter, who despite giving up four runs, two earned, pitched the best of the Yankees starters in this four game series. He left after 6.1 innings. Had the error not happened, he would have gotten through the seventh inning with the score only 2-1 Toronto.
So the Blue Jays march on to the ALCS where they await the winner of the Seattle Mariners - Detroit Tigers series. The Yankees head home with another disappointing finish in the postseason, and now, 16 years without a title.
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