New York Yankees finally managed to crawl their way up to number four in the American League East Division points table, thanks to a hard-fought split series against the Tampa Bay Rays. However, another major challenge awaited the highly confident Bronx Bombers. The club was scheduled to face the Toronto Blue Jays for a four-game crucial series.
The first game of the crucial series took place on Monday in Toronto, Canada. The Yankees started off great with the offense by putting up six runs lead. The captain, Aaron Judge, majorly contributed with two home runs. On the other hand, the Blue Jays hitters toiled hard to put up some numbers on board but were put off by the Yankee’s unique pitching strategy.
Yankees Overcome Pitching Woes With Rare Strategy
When facing a formidable opponent like the Toronto Blue Jays, the New York Yankees knew they had to adopt a unique pitching strategy to overcome the challenge. With the Blue Jays’ powerful lineup and potent offense, the Bombers understood that conventional approaches might not be enough. Not only that, the team is short on starters. Hence, the front office opted for an opener approach. They called in reliever Jimmy Cordero to open for the team, who went off after pitching two scoreless innings. Later, the Yankees summoned the starter, Jhony Briton, to continue throwing for the rest of the game.
The plan worked just as the Yankees hoped it would. The idea behind the strategy was to save Brito from facing the right-handers. Briton has struggled against the right-hand batters all along this season, and as a matter of fact, the Blue Jays lineup is filled with right-handers. Hence, the Bombers’ think tank chose to let Cordero open and tackle the right-handers before Brito could take care of the rest. Cordero issued a statement after the game and said it was his first time opening, and he loved it. Moreover, the reliever also remains open to taking up the challenge in the future if needed. Overall, all things fell in place for the Bombers as they registered a thumping 7-4 victory to take an early lead in the series.
Aaron Judge Pumped After Thrashing Blue Jays In The Series Opener
It’s safe to say the New York Yankees are back. Why, you ask? They won a series against the Athletics, split one with the mighty Bay Rays, and won the series opener against the Blue Jays, and the struggling offense is back on track where it should be. Meanwhile, Aaron Judge, the captain, is pumped as ever with the thumping win. In an interview, he said the Yankees needed to step up against the top two teams of the division, and they, fortunately, did just that over the week.
Aaron Judge added the team needs to show some character and throw themselves onto the field to clinch these crucial victories. Splitting a series against the table topper and winning the opener against the Jays is a big deal. Hence, the captain wants the team to continue building on the momentum and rise up on the points table.