Springer homers twice, Blue Jays win 8-5 to sweep Yankees and take first in AL East
Springer put Toronto ahead 3-1 in the third inning and expanded his team's lead to three runs in the eighth as the Blue Jays (49-38) took over first place in the American League East from the Yankees (48-39).
The Blue Jays were eight games behind the Yankees on May 28.
A dogged Nathan Lukes endured a 14-pitch at-bat to snap a tie with a two-run double in the fourth inning before 36,848 at Rogers Centre.
Addison Barger added a solo homer in the fifth to go with two earlier doubles.
Toronto starter Chris Bassitt (8-4) struck out nine in 5 2/3 innings, surrendering three runs on eight hits and three walks.
The Yankees struck for two runs in the seventh to make it a one-run game.
Springer walked with one out and scored on Addison Barger's double to left centre in the first inning. Trent Grisham tied the game in the third with his 12th homer.
The Yankees tied the game in the bottom half on a run-producing single from Anthony Volpe and a Bassitt wild pitch that scored the Yankees shortstop.
New York starter Clarke Schmidt left the game after three innings because of right forearm tightness. He gave up three runs on four hits and two walks with a strikeout.
Jeff Hoffman earned his 21st save with a one-hit ninth.
Takeaways
Yankees: Aaron Judge walked six times in the series. He was intentionally walked on three occasions.
Blue Jays: The home team outscored New York 36-23 in the four-game sweep.
Key moment
After Jasson Dominguez singled and stole second to put runners on second and third, Volpe fouled out to Blue Jays third baseman Will Wagner to end the fifth inning and preserve a two-run Toronto lead.
Thursdays
Keep up to date on sports with Mike McIntyre's weekly newsletter.
Key stat
The Blue Jays swept the Yankees in a four-game series at home for the first time in club history.
Up next
Toronto opens a weekend series at home against the Los Angeles Angels on Friday with lefty Eric Lauer (4-1) facing Angels righty Kyle Hendricks (5-6).
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 3, 2025.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Winnipeg Free Press
an hour ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
McNeil's clutch homer lifts Mets over Yankees in Subway Series opener
NEW YORK (AP) — Jeff McNeil hit a go-ahead, two-run homer off Luke Weaver in the seventh inning, leading the New York Mets over the Yankees 6-5 on Friday in a Subway Series opener between teams that faded badly after strong starts. Juan Soto hit a two-run homer among three hits against his former team and Brett Baty connected for a solo shot in the sixth off Ian Hamilton that cut the Yankees' lead to 5-4. Weaver (1-3) relieved with two outs in the seventh and walked Pete Alonso. McNeil drove a changeup into the right-field upper deck at Citi Field, sending the Yankees to their fifth straight loss during a slide that dropped them from the AL East lead. Jasson Domínguez ended a 32-game homerless streak, hitting a pair of opposite-field homers and driving in three runs. Domínguez and Judge hit back-to-back homers starting the game, Judge's 32nd this year, and Cody Bellinger also went deep for the Yankees. Huascar Brazobán (4-2) pitched a hitless seventh and Reed Garrett got six outs for his third save, helped by an outstanding defensive play from McNeil at second base in the ninth. RED SOX 11, NATIONALS 2 WASHINGTON (AP) — Trevor Story homered and drove in four runs as part of a four-hit day, Lucas Giolito pitched 7 2/3 innings of one-run ball in his first game against the team that drafted him and Boston routed Washington. Jarren Duran had three RBIs for Boston, which collected 16 hits and has won four of six since enduring a season-worst six-game skid. Washington was denied its first three-game winning streak since taking four in a row on May 28-31. Giolito (5-1) allowed four hits and three walks while striking out seven, surrendering Luis García Jr.'s sacrifice fly in the sixth. He is 2-0 with an 0.61 ERA in his last two starts. REDS 9, PHILLIES 6 PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Spencer Steer hit a two-RBI double to spark a five-run third inning and Reds reliever Tony Santillan struck out Alec Bohm with the bases loaded to end the eighth and lead Cincinnati past Philadelphia. Phillies starter Jesús Luzardo lasted only two-plus innings and Reds starter Andrew Abbott — both pitchers entered with seven wins — couldn't get out of the fourth. The Reds or Phillies scored at least one run in each of the first six innings and the defending NL East champion Phillies finished with 14 hits. The Reds had 11. Nick Castellanos hit a two-run homer in the first inning to help stake Luzardo (7-5) to a 3-0 lead. Luzardo pitched like an All-Star deep into May with an ERA hovering under 2.00 through his first 10 starts. He has been rocked in most of his outings since. He allowed a run in the second inning and gave up two run-scoring singles, a sacrifice fly and Steer's double in the third that made it 6-3. Elly De La Cruz added an RBI single in the fourth and the Reds tacked on two more runs in the fifth for a 9-4 lead. CUBS 11, CARDINALS 3 CHICAGO (AP) — Michael Busch hit three home runs, Pete Crow-Armstrong connected twice and Chicago went deep a franchise-record eight times in pounding St. Louis for its fourth straight victory. Busch finished 4 for 4 with five RBIs. Crow-Armstrong also went 4 for 4 and Dansby Swanson launched a two-run homer during a Cubs power barrage that had the crowd of 40,038 at Wrigley Field roaring. Seiya Suzuki and Carson Kelly added solo shots as the NL Central leaders hit six homers in the first three innings off Miles Mikolas (4-6), a record for most home runs off a Cardinals pitcher in one game. The eight longballs allowed by St. Louis also broke a club mark. Brendan Donovan led off the fourth with a home run against Colin Rea, ending a 31-inning scoreless streak for the Cardinals. St. Louis, which dropped its fourth straight, was shut out in its three previous losses. That was the only hit Rea (6-3) allowed in 6 2/3 innings, matching his longest outing this season. Mikolas (4-6) was tagged for eight runs and 10 hits over six innings in losing his fourth in a row. MARINERS 6, PIRATES 0 SEATTLE (AP) — Cal Raleigh hit his 34th and 35th home runs to set a career high and match Ken Griffey Jr.'s Seattle record for homers before the All-Star break, helping the Mariners beat Pittsburgh. The major league leader turned on a fastball from Bailey Falter (6-4) in the first inning and walloped it well past the wall in left. The exit velocity on the two-run shot was logged at 115.2 mph, per Statcast — the hardest-hit ball of his career. Raleigh topped his previous career high — set last season — in the sixth with a solo shot that chased Falter. The Mariners only mustered one other hit off the left-hander, but it was also a home run courtesy of Randy Arozarena in the fourth inning. Mariners starter Bryan Woo (8-4) went six innings. TWINS 4, RAYS 3 MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Harrison Bader hit his second home run of the game in the bottom of the ninth inning to give Minnesota a victory over Tampa Bay. Bader, the No. 9 batter, lined the first pitch he saw from Kevin Kelly (0-1) into the first row of left-field seats to complete a three-run Minnesota comeback. It was the third career walk-off RBI for Bader, first on a home run. Louis Varland (3-3) pitched two scoreless innings for the win. Trailing 3-1 in the seventh, Minnesota got a two-out RBI double from Byron Buxton before Rays reliever Garrett Cleavinger hit Willi Castro and Brooks Lee with pitches, tying the game. Carlos Correa struck out with the bases loaded. Twins starter Chris Paddack allowed two earned runs and five hits in five-plus innings. Josh Lowe singled against Paddack leading off the sixth and scored on Yandy Díaz's double. Junior Caminero drove in Díaz with a single off Danny Coulombe for a 2-1 Rays lead. Lowe added an RBI single in the seventh. Zack Littell pitched six solid innings for Tampa Bay, allowing one earned run for the third straight start. He scattered four hits and struck out five. ORIOLES 3, BRAVES 2 ATLANTA (AP) — Jordan Westburg had three hits, including a homer, Cedric Mullins added a two-run shot and Charlie Morton allowed two runs in his return to Atlanta to lead Baltimore to a win. Morton (5-7) improved to 5-0 in 10 appearances, including seven starts, since May 10. Morton, who pitched for the Braves for four years before signing a one-year deal with the Orioles, threw five scoreless innings before giving up a two-run homer to Drake Baldwin in the sixth. Westburg returned to the lineup after aggravating his left index finger on Friday and made an immediate impact. After reaching on an infield single in the first inning, Westburg snapped a scoreless tie in the third with an opposite-field homer to right field, his eighth, off Spencer Strider (3-7). Tyler O'Neill had a single and a walk in his return from Baltimore's injured list. O'Neill had been out since May 16 with a left shoulder impingement. TIGERS 2, GUARDIANS 1 CLEVELAND (AP) — Wenceel Pérez and Zach McKinstry homered as Detroit extended Cleveland's losing streak to eight games. José Ramírez went deep for the Guardians, who are on their longest skid since dropping nine straight in 2021. Tyler Holton (4-3) pitched 2 2/3 innings of one-hit ball to earn the win. Will Vest went 1 1/3 innings for his 14th save in 17 opportunities. Steven Kwan gave the Guardians some hope in the ninth with a two-out double down the left-field line, but Kyle Manzardo hit a grounder to Vest for the final out. Detroit's Reese Olson made his first start since May 17 and allowed only one run on six hits in 4 1/3 innings. The right-hander was out nearly seven weeks due to right ring finger inflammation. Pérez tied it at 1 in the third inning with a drive to center field off Cleveland starter Slade Cecconi (3-4). McKinstry then led off the fourth by connecting on a curve ball over the wall in right-center for his second go-ahead homer of the season. Ramírez snapped an 0-for-21 drought when he put a 94.8 mph fastball from Olson into the right field stands for his 14th homer of the season. It was also the first time he had gone deep since June 14 at Seattle. Cecconi went six innings and threw a career-high 105 pitches. He gave up six hits and struck out five. PADRES 3, RANGERS 2, 10 INNINGS SAN DIEGO (AP) — Jake Cronenworth singled to right field with the bases loaded and two outs in the 10th inning to give San Diego a win over Texas. Cronenworth's single off Robert Garcia (1-4) brought in automatic runner Jackson Merrill. Cronenworth raised his right index finger as he rounded first base and was mobbed by teammates near second after his fifth career walk-off hit. Manny Machado was intentionally walked to open the inning and Luis Arraez struck out. Gavin Sheets singled to center to load the bases. Xander Bogaerts injured himself swinging at the first pitch of his at-bat, was checked by an athletic trainer and left the game. Bryce Johnson replaced him and struck out. The Rangers went to extra innings for the sixth time in nine games, losing four of them. BREWERS 6, MARLINS 5 MIAMI (AP) — Christian Yelich scored the go-ahead run all the way from first on a double by Jackson Chourio in the eighth inning and Milwaukee beat Miami. Yelich singled leading off the eighth against Cade Gibson (2-4) and Chourio followed with his hit to help the Brewers win for the 10th time in 14 games. Aaron Ashby (1-0) retired all seven batters he faced for the win. Trevor Megill gave up a two-out single to Xavier Edwards before issuing a nine-pitch walk to Jesús Sánchez, but he struck out Otto Lopez swinging for his 19th save in 22 opportunities. BLUE JAYS 4, ANGELS 3, 10 INNINGS TORONTO (AP) — Myles Straw scored the winning run on a throwing error by pitcher Sam Bachman in the 10th inning, and Toronto extended its winning streak to six games by beating Los Angeles. Straw, the automatic runner, scored from second when Bachman fielded Ernie Clement's sacrifice bunt and overthrew first base. Bachman (1-2) entered in the 10th and walked leadoff hitter Nathan Lukes, putting runners on first and second with nobody out for Clement. Chad Green (3-2) worked a scoreless inning for the win. Jo Adell tied it for the Angels with a three-run homer in the seventh. WHITE SOX 3, ROCKIES 2 DENVER (AP) — Adrian Houser allowed two hits in eight innings and rookie catcher Edgar Quero hit his first major league home run — a tiebreaking solo shot in the sixth that sent Chicago past Colorado. Thursdays Keep up to date on sports with Mike McIntyre's weekly newsletter. Rookie reliever Grant Taylor gave up a two-out single to Mickey Moniak in the ninth before striking out Ryan McMahon for his third save. In a matchup between the two worst teams in the majors, Houser (4-2) permitted two unearned runs on four hits and two walks. He hasn't yielded more than three runs in any of his eight starts this season. The veteran right-hander was coming off seven sharp innings in a 1-0 win over the Giants that Taylor also saved. Andrew Benintendi and Miguel Vargas opened the fourth with singles against Antonio Senzatela (3-12), and Quero walked to load the bases. Michael A. Taylor's two-out single gave Chicago a 2-0 lead. Michael Toglia doubled in the fifth and scored on a throwing error by third baseman Josh Rojas. Tyler Freeman doubled to tie it at 2. Quero gave Chicago the lead with a 401-foot drive to right field — before getting the silent treatment from his teammates when he returned to the dugout.
Winnipeg Free Press
an hour ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Surging Blue Jays relying on each other to get the job done
TORONTO – After an emotional four-game sweep of the visiting New York Yankees, the Toronto Blue Jays could have easily experienced the old hangover effect. But instead of a letdown, the Blue Jays (50-38) pulled out a thrilling 4-3 win in 10 innings against the Los Angeles Angels (43-44) to extend their American League East lead to two games as both the Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays lost on Friday. 'I think it would have been easy to have a little bit of a letdown,' Toronto manager John Schneider said after his team expanded its win streak to a season-high six games and highlighted how there have been different players at different times who have stepped up. 'I talk about it a lot that these guys don't care who it is, and they don't care how we do it. That is a really good quality to have when you're playing every single night for 16 straight days like we're in the middle of.' In the series opener against the visiting Angels, Schneider received a strong outing from starter Eric Lauer, aggressive base running and a perfect bunt from Ernie Clement that resulted in the walk-off run. Clement laid down a bunt on the third-base side of the mound. Angels reliever Sam Bachman hurried to cross over the mound from the other side to field the bunt. As a result, he rushed his throw high as Clement sped down the line. This enabled automatic runner Myles Straw to score the winning run from second base. Earlier, in a three-run sixth inning, George Springer aggressively went from first to third on a Bo Bichette single to left field. Springer then scored on shortstop Zach Neto's throwing error on a bouncer up the middle from Addison Barger. 'You need to have everything like we had tonight,' Schneider said. The Blue Jays reached 50 wins in their 88th game, a feat they haven't accomplished since 1992 when they went on to win the first of back-to-back World Series titles. Clement believes the closeness of the Blue Jays players and coaching staff has transferred into their 34-18 run since May 8. Only the Houston Astros have been better during this stretch with a 35-17 clip. 'We just keep relying on each other,' Clement said. 'It's all about relying on each other and picking each other up.' Bichette returned to the lineup on Friday after being limited to one pinch-hit appearance in the Yankees series because of a sore knee. Thursdays Keep up to date on sports with Mike McIntyre's weekly newsletter. But Vladimir Guerrero Jr. sat out Friday's game before 30,119 at Rogers Centre after fouling off a pitch on his right foot in the sixth inning of the series finale against the Yankees on Thursday. Meanwhile, Lauer didn't register the win after Jo Adell greeted Toronto reliever Nick Sandlin with a three-run homer in the seventh inning. But the lefty did check in with his first quality start since April 19, 2023, when he pitched for the Milwaukee Brewers. 'Winning is fun,' the 30-year-old Lauer said. 'Like I said before we never feel we're out of a game. Good things happen when you put the ball in play.' Good things are happening to the Blue Jays at home, too. The win Friday improved their record at Rogers Centre to 30-16, third-best in the American League behind the Astros (32-14) and the Detroit Tigers (30-14). This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 4, 2025.
Global News
an hour ago
- Global News
Jays rely on each other to get the job done
TORONTO – After an emotional four-game sweep of the visiting New York Yankees, the Toronto Blue Jays could have easily experienced the old hangover effect. But instead of a letdown, the Blue Jays (50-38) pulled out a thrilling 4-3 win in 10 innings against the Los Angeles Angels (43-44) to extend their American League East lead to two games as both the Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays lost on Friday. 'I think it would have been easy to have a little bit of a letdown,' Toronto manager John Schneider said after his team expanded its win streak to a season-high six games and highlighted how there have been different players at different times who have stepped up. 'I talk about it a lot that these guys don't care who it is, and they don't care how we do it. That is a really good quality to have when you're playing every single night for 16 straight days like we're in the middle of.' Story continues below advertisement In the series opener against the visiting Angels, Schneider received a strong outing from starter Eric Lauer, aggressive base running and a perfect bunt from Ernie Clement that resulted in the walk-off run. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy Clement laid down a bunt on the third-base side of the mound. Angels reliever Sam Bachman hurried to cross over the mound from the other side to field the bunt. As a result, he rushed his throw high as Clement sped down the line. This enabled automatic runner Myles Straw to score the winning run from second base. Earlier, in a three-run sixth inning, George Springer aggressively went from first to third on a Bo Bichette single to left field. Springer then scored on shortstop Zach Neto's throwing error on a bouncer up the middle from Addison Barger. Story continues below advertisement 'You need to have everything like we had tonight,' Schneider said. The Blue Jays reached 50 wins in their 88th game, a feat they haven't accomplished since 1992 when they went on to win the first of back-to-back World Series titles. Clement believes the closeness of the Blue Jays players and coaching staff has transferred into their 34-18 run since May 8. Only the Houston Astros have been better during this stretch with a 35-17 clip. 'We just keep relying on each other,' Clement said. 'It's all about relying on each other and picking each other up.' Bichette returned to the lineup on Friday after being limited to one pinch-hit appearance in the Yankees series because of a sore knee. But Vladimir Guerrero Jr. sat out Friday's game before 30,119 at Rogers Centre after fouling off a pitch on his right foot in the sixth inning of the series finale against the Yankees on Thursday. Meanwhile, Lauer didn't register the win after Jo Adell greeted Toronto reliever Nick Sandlin with a three-run homer in the seventh inning. But the lefty did check in with his first quality start since April 19, 2023, when he pitched for the Milwaukee Brewers. 'Winning is fun,' the 30-year-old Lauer said. 'Like I said before we never feel we're out of a game. Good things happen when you put the ball in play.' Story continues below advertisement Good things are happening to the Blue Jays at home, too. The win Friday improved their record at Rogers Centre to 30-16, third-best in the American League behind the Astros (32-14) and the Detroit Tigers (30-14). This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 4, 2025.
