Bo Bichette's Late Homer Burns Bombers, Snapping Yankees' Win Streak
Clay Holmes has been nothing short of amazing for the Yankees since he was acquired prior to the trade deadline. On Wednesday night, the right-hander surrendered a decisive blow.
Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette crushed a go-ahead solo home run off Holmes to lead off the bottom of the eighth inning, powering Toronto to a 6-5 victory.
It was Bichette's second home run of the game after the phenom took Yankees ace Gerrit Cole deep in the third inning. He finished the ballgame 3-for-4 with two runs and two RBI.
Cole wasn't his best Wednesday night, scuffling early against an aggressive Blue Jays lineup. The right-hander was tagged for five runs in the first three innings, allowing five extra-base hits in that span.
Toronto kept jumping on the right-hander's fastball. Cole said after the game that his game plan to try and establish his best pitch clashed with the Blue Jays' approach, trying to take advantage of heaters early in each count.
As Cole settled into a groove, New York's offense battled back from an early deficit. After taking a perfect game into the fifth inning, Jose Berríos allowed two run-scoring hits to Gio Urshela and Brett Gardner.
Aaron Judge's sacrifice fly in the sixth made it a two-run game before catcher Kyle Higashioka knotted the score with a massive two-out, two-run single to plate Joey Gallo and Gleyber Torres in the seventh.
The score would remain tied until the bottom of the eighth when Bichette pounced on a 1-0 sinker from Holmes. It traveled 399 feet, sneaking over right-center field wall at the Rogers Centre.
Entering play on Wednesday night, Holmes had posted a 1.44 ERA over 25 appearances with New York. The Bichette blast was just his second home run allowed in a Yankees uniform.
As much Bichette's second homer of the night was the play that ended up giving Toronto the lead, a mistake on defense a few innings prior loomed just as large.
Leading off the fifth frame, center fielder George Springer skied a routine fly ball to shallow left field. Gallo charged in, poised to make the grab with ease, but backed off at the last second when he saw Urshela approaching from the infield.
The two tremendous defenders watched as the ball slammed into the turf, allowing Springer to scamper into second base safely with a double. Two batters later, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. drove his teammate home with another double.
Springer's run was Toronto's fifth of the evening, meaning Higashioka's two-run single later in the game would've given the Bombers a late lead, changing the trajectory of this dramatic contest.
With the loss on Wednesday night, and Boston's blowout win in Baltimore, the Yankees' lead atop the American League Wild Card standings dropped to just one game. The Blue Jays also gained a game on the Yankees with their victory, trailing the Red Sox by just one game.
New York will face AL Cy Young Award front runner Robbie Ray on Thursday. Corey Kluber takes the rock for the Bombers. Considering only four games remain in the regular season, as has been the case for the last several days, both teams will treat Thursday night like their postseason lives depend on it.
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