© Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports
Bichette's Big Night Sets Up Blue Jays' 8th Straight Win, Sweep of Yanks
Bo Bichette had himself a night.
With two hits in his back pocket already, the Blue Jays' shortstop seemed determined to keep rolling. After Danny Jansen hustled for a two-out double and Jake Lamb was hit by a pitch, Bichette readied in the box.
He needed but one pitch—a slider low and away—from Yankees' reliever Sal Romano to break the deadlock, as Bichette lashed a soft liner into center field to give Toronto a lead.
Bichette's most important hit of Thursday’s 6-4 win came in the seventh, but he kicked off the ball game with one of his flashiest displays of the season.
The 23-year-old, occupying the leadoff spot for ninth time this year, worked a nine-pitch at-bat off New York starter Néstor Cortes Jr. before breaking through.
With one violent hack, the deed was done, and the no-doubt home run sailed over the left field wall as Bichette flipped his bat in admiration. The solo shot was Toronto's eighth leadoff home run of the season and just Bichette's second longball since August 6.
"Today was a big game," said Bichette, who finished 3-for-5 with two RBIs. "Obviously we won the last three, but today was huge to finish off the series.
"We still have ground to make up. So just having that [home run] to lead off the game and set the tone, I just felt good to do something for the team, really."
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. cranked his 42nd home run of the season—and 100th RBI, becoming the youngest in franchise history to reach the single-season milestone—to give the Blue Jays' bullpen some breathing room.
Now that the team isn't pressing, Bichette said things are naturally coming together.
"When everybody in the lineup was kind of struggling like before, a lot of guys felt like they needed to do something more, like, hit a two-run homer with nobody on base," he said. "Things like that."
"It helps when all the guys are doing well, but we're just coming to the field every day doing the best to prepare to win."
Joakim Soria mopped up the seventh and Tim Mayza gutted through two singles to roll an inning-ending double play in the eighth. A big fist pump followed, as the Toronto's crafty left-hander let loose a rare surge of emotion.
"My best compliment to Tim Mayza was that I never panic on the bench," manager Charlie Montoyo said. "Alright that's fine, two guys get base hits. He's not going to get everybody out ... my confidence was there, the whole team's confident and he did the job."
Nate Pearson allowed two solo home runs in the ninth, but shut the door. Still, the close call at the end showed the value of Jose Berríos' quality start.
After punching out Joey Gallo on four pitches in the fourth, it became clear Berríos was locked in. He lasered in with first-pitch strikes and, even when Yankees' hitters did reach base, Berríos wiggled his way out of it with some nifty defense of his own.
The 27-year-old was excellent for 99% of the night, but baseball is a cruel game, and things can change on a dime. A check swing groundball single off third base by Aaron Judge gave the Yankees a runner in the sixth, and one batter later Anthony Rizzo demolished a mistake fastball to tie the game.
Berríos pitched 6 2/3 innings, allowed two earned runs, struck out eight and walked two, but wanted that last out in the seventh. As Montoyo walked out to pull him from the game, the right-hander smiled and had a conversation with his manager.
"He told me 'You already have 110 pitches.' So I said, 'I know, I know,'" Berríos said. "He's the manager. I'm always going to respect his decision, and we have to believe in each other.
"I feel like I'm a competitive guy. Obviously I want to keep pitching, but at the same time I'm on the same page with Charlie."
All in all, Toronto's effort extended its win streak to eight games and represented the Blue Jays' first four-game sweep in New York since a roster headlined by Roy Halladay and Carlos Delgado did it back in 2003.
The Blue Jays' epic run began in Oakland and has carried over to The Bronx, as the club sits just a half-game back of the second wild-card spot. Next up, a series in Baltimore gives Toronto the chance to fly even higher.
"I've been in this division for a while now, I know it's very difficult," Montoyo said. "That's why I'm so proud of my team.
"And not only that, before this, we had to play Oakland, another great team, and we did the same thing. I'm so proud of my team it's not even funny. It's great actually."
