After Luis Severino became the first pitcher to strike out Vladimir Guerrero Jr. three times, Michael King managed to escape a bases-loaded, no-outs jam formed by Aroldis Chapman to preserve the New York Yankees’ 3-0 win over the Toronto Blue Jays on Thursday.
Guerrero did strike out 4 times in total for the very first time in his career, coming off a night in which he hit three home runs and went 4 for 4.
Chapman was given a 3-0 lead and threw only four of 16 pitches for strikes. He did walk the bottom three batters in Toronto’s lineup, including Santiago Espinal, Cavan Biggio, and pinch hitter Matt Chapman.
Aaron Boone, the Yankees’ manager, replaced Chapman with King, the right-hander.
King struck out George Springer on 3 pitches during his first big league save chance, throwing a fastball for a called third strike.
Bo Bichette did take a called strike with Guerrero in the on-deck circle, and after that struck a soft liner to second baseman DJ LeMahieu, who decided to throw to first for the final out. The Yankees defeated the Blue Jays for the 2nd in the four-game series.
King’s getaway act extended New York’s bullpen’s solid start. The Yankees finished their 1st homestand with a 1.30 ERA in 34 2/3 innings.
Severino (1-0) struck out six batters and walked two in 5 innings. Before the ninth-inning drama, Lucas Luetge, Miguel Castro, Clay Holmes, and Chae Green batted.
Severino earned his first victory as a starting pitcher on September 22, 2019, also against Toronto, after a 95-minute rain delay. He did throw 83 pitches, 18 more than he did in his season debut against Boston on Saturday, and he averaged 97.4 mph on 33 fastballs.
Jose Trevino struck RBI singles off Kevin Gausman (0-1) in the third and fifth innings, and Isiah Kiner-Falefa both had three hits and scored on Trevino’s hits. New York’s Nos. 8 and 9 batters went 4 for 43 with one RBI.
In the eighth inning, Giancarlo Stanton got to add an RBI groundout.
Guerrero did strike out on a changeup in the first, took a called third strike on a cutter in the third, and whiffed on that other Severino changeup in the fifth. In the eighth inning, he struck out on a slider from Holmes.
In 5 2/3 innings, Gausman allowed two runs and six hits. He did strike out nine batters while walking none.
UP NEXT
Yankees: LHP Jordan Montgomery (0-0, 8.10 ERA) will start against Orioles RHP Jordan Lyles (0-1, 9.00 ERA) Friday in Baltimore. Montgomery took a 103 mph comebacker off his left knee from Boston’s Xander Bogaerts on Sunday.
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