TORONTO — Ahead of his performance at the Sobeys Stadium on Saturday June 29, reggae artist Shaggy threw the first pitch at the Blue Jays-Yankees game on Friday. The Wasn’t Me Singer shared his excitement about the city of Toronto and nerves in an MLB interview. “Great restaurants, amazing culture, it’s a melting pot of culture, it’s always fun. Even here tonight, you’re talking Blue Jays, you talk Yankees,” Shaggy remarked.
Despite being more accustomed to cricket than baseball, Shaggy took on the challenge with enthusiasm. “I am more a cricket guy, that’s the only thing I’ll throw, so I have to figure out how to throw this ball,” he admitted.
He added, “I had like a quick practice, but I have been going since 6:00 am with all the press, so I haven’t had a chance to focus on it. Fingers crossed.”
Following Shaggy’s pitch, the game itself saw the Yankees break out of a slump in spectacular fashion. Nearly a week’s worth of frustration poured out from the Yankees’ bats in the sixth inning on Friday night, and they didn’t stop there.
After a six-run rally in the sixth inning to take the lead, the Yankees exploded with a seven-run ninth inning, snapping their season-high four-game losing streak with a commanding 16-5 victory over the Blue Jays at Rogers Centre.
Aaron Judge scores a run for the Yankees during their win against the Blue Jays on Friday. Aaron Judge scores a run for the Yankees during their win against the Blue Jays. AP Delivering a much-needed full-lineup offensive outburst, the Yankees (53-31) secured their third win in their last 12 games, evening the series heading into the weekend.
Every member of the starting lineup recorded at least one hit, with six of them having multi-hit nights, as the Yankees amassed 18 hits in total.
Tensions began to rise in the bottom of the fifth inning when the Blue Jays (37-44) broke a 1-1 tie to take a 3-1 lead, partly due to Vladimir Guerrero Jr. beating out a double play that left Marcus Stroman infuriated.
No. 9 hitter and DH Jahmai Jones, who had a three-hit night, led off with a single, followed by Anthony Volpe’s perfect bunt single.
Juan Soto, given the green light on a 3-0 count against left-hander Yusei Kikuchi, smashed a fastball into the right-field seats, putting the Yankees ahead 4-3 — their first lead since Saturday.
Gleyber Torres homered for the Yankees during their win Friday against the Blue Jays. Gleyber Torres homered for the Yankees during their win Friday against the Blue Jays. USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Con That hit chased Kikuchi from the game, and the Yankees continued to pile on against righty reliever Nate Pearson.
Aaron Judge ripped a single off the left-field wall, followed by J.D. Davis’ first hit as a Yankee, an RBI double to the gap, making it 5-3.
Torres, who had been resting the past two games, turned on an inside fastball for a two-run homer, extending the lead to 7-3.
The Blue Jays closed the gap to 7-5 with home runs by Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Guerrero, but the Yankees expanded their lead late in the game.
Alex Verdugo, who had been struggling, drilled an RBI double in the eighth inning, and DJ LeMahieu added his first extra-base hit of the season, another RBI double, making it 9-5.
Marcus Stroman allowed three runs on five hits during the Yankees’ win Friday. Marcus Stroman allowed three runs on five hits during the Yankees’ win Friday. Getty Images For the second straight night and the third time in their last four games, the Yankees fell behind in the first inning.
Stroman got into trouble by walking leadoff man Bo Bichette, which came back to bite him two outs later when Justin Turner and George Springer hit back-to-back singles, giving the Blue Jays a 1-0 lead.
The Yankees tied it in the fourth, thanks to smart baserunning by Judge and Soto.
With Judge on first and Soto on second with one out, Davis hit a chopper to second baseman Spencer Horwitz. Judge stopped, then took a few steps back toward first, causing Horwitz to throw to first to get Davis out. Guerrero then ran Judge halfway back to second, allowing Soto to break for home and slide in safely ahead of the throw.
