Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton, and Anthony Rizzo hit home runs, and the New York Yankees forced Kevin Gausman out of the game in the second inning on their way to a 9-8 win against the Toronto Blue Jays on Saturday night.
Judge and Stanton hit their homers in the first inning against Gausman, while Rizzo added his first of the season in the fifth inning against Mitch White. The Yankees built leads of 6-0 in the second inning and 9-2 in the sixth inning before holding off a late comeback attempt by the Blue Jays.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone praised Stanton’s competitive at-bats despite his previous struggles. Stanton, who improved his batting average to .214 with three hits in the game, emphasized the importance of staying within his hitting zones.
Luke Weaver, despite allowing three runs over two innings, earned his third win of the season. The Yankees’ victory improved their record to 7-2 for the season.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit a home run for the Blue Jays in the seventh inning as part of their late rally attempt. However, Clay Holmes closed the game out for the Yankees, securing his fourth save of the season.
Gausman struggled with his fastball velocity, averaging 91.4 mph on a cold night in New York. He allowed six runs, including five earned runs, in just 1 1/3 innings, marking his shortest outing since May 2019.