Blue Jays Fall to Yankees 7-6

The Toronto Blue Jays arrived in New York looking to reset the tone of their season against the division-rival Yankees. For most of Monday night, they looked on track to do exactly that.

Instead, another late collapse left them walking out of Yankee Stadium with a frustrating 7-6 loss after the bullpen failed to protect a two-run lead in the seventh inning.

Toronto had built momentum throughout the night behind timely hitting from Ernie Clement and George Springer, but the game unraveled quickly once Yariel Rodríguez entered in relief.

With the Blue Jays holding a 5-3 advantage and two outs already recorded in the seventh, Aaron Judge kept the inning alive with a single before Cody Bellinger turned the game around with a two-run homer into the Yankees bullpen in right-center field. Moments later, Jazz Chisholm Jr. added another crushing blow, slicing a two-run shot that clipped the foul pole down the left-field line to suddenly push New York ahead for good.

In the span of four batters, Toronto’s strong position disappeared.

The Blue Jays had done plenty right earlier in the night.

Ernie Clement delivered one of his best offensive performances of the season, driving in four runs, including a three-run homer in the fourth inning that briefly gave Toronto control of the game. Springer also continued his encouraging return from injury, launching his first home run since March 30 after earlier collecting the 1,500th hit of his Major League career.

Toronto even received a positive moment from rookie Adam Macko, the Slovak-born left-hander who retired all three batters he faced during his MLB debut.

But once again, the inability to close out innings proved costly for a Blue Jays team still searching for consistency.

The Yankees entered the series struggling in close games and coming off a difficult road trip, but New York capitalized on Toronto’s bullpen mistakes exactly when the opportunity appeared. Rodríguez, who inherited a clean inning, could not finish it.

The loss also overshadowed a solid response offensively from a Toronto lineup that has battled injuries and inconsistency throughout the opening stretch of the season.

Springer’s homer in the fifth gave the Blue Jays a needed answer after the Yankees had tied the game an inning earlier, while Clement continued to produce in key moments with runners on base. Toronto consistently forced New York’s pitching staff into difficult spots and nearly completed another comeback in the ninth inning.

Down by two entering the final frame, the Blue Jays immediately pressured Yankees closer David Bednar. Clement opened the inning with a walk before Jesús Sánchez ripped an RBI double to cut the deficit to one. With the tying run in scoring position and the top of Toronto’s lineup coming up, the game suddenly felt within reach again.

Bednar, however, escaped the jam.

He struck out Springer in a critical at-bat before Vladimir Guerrero Jr. grounded out to end the game, allowing the Yankees to survive despite another shaky finish from their closer.

For Toronto, the loss continued a troubling trend in close games. The Blue Jays have struggled to consistently lock down late leads, an issue magnified by the heavy workload currently placed on the bullpen due to injuries across the rotation.

Patrick Corbin surrendered an immediate home run to Paul Goldschmidt on the first pitch of the game and ultimately allowed the Yankees to stay within striking distance long enough for the late comeback.

Now, Toronto turns quickly to Tuesday’s matchup, where Dylan Cease will once again be asked to stabilize a pitching staff that desperately needs length from its starters.

After Monday’s collapse, the margin for error already feels thinner.