About Last Night: TOR 11, NYY 9

by Ethan Semendinger

July 3, 2025

***

The Yankees played the Toronto Blue Jays last night in Toronto. After dropping the first two games of the series, the Yankees helped the Blue Jays take the series win (with one more game to go) with an 11-9 loss. Let's talk about it...

Quick Stats:

• Will Warren survived 4.0 innings, allowing 10 hits, 4 walks, and 8 runs (all earned)

• Jose Berrios made it just 4.1 innings, allowing 9 hits and 6 runs (all earned)

• The Yankees out-hit the Blue Jays with 15 to their 13

• The Yankees had 6 extra base hits (2 homers) to the Blue Jays 4 (3 homers)

• Devin Williams recorded the loss, giving up 2 (earned) runs in the bottom of the 8th, allowing the Blue Jays to break the 9-9 tie late

The Game Story:

Please note that this was yet another game that the Yankees took away from their fans and placed it on a streaming service that many fans do not have. (Like me.) As such, I didn't watch the game. I followed the game on MLB Gameday which offers play-by-play accounting while also visiting with my family. (Family time is always more valuable than watching the Yankees or anything on TV.)

So, the game...

Will Warren did not come out the gates strong. The first 5 batters for the Blue Jays safely reached based...and all scored after an Addison Barger 3-run home run. Three batters later, Davis Schneider continued the run with a 2-run blast of his own. The Yankees were quickly down 7-0.

The Blue Jays would add another run in the third (via an Andres Gimenez single) before the Yankees responded, in a big way, in the 5th inning.

I had hope. Dominguez, Volpe, LeMahieu, Rice, and Judge combined for 5 straight hits (and 3 runs) to start the inning, before Giancarlo Stanton hit his first home run of the year to bring the Yankees close at 8-6. But, the damage was quelled when Jose Berrios was taken out of the game.

The Yankees added another run in the 6th to bring the score within one, but a 7th inning home run by Davis Schneider (his second of the night) gave the Blue Jays another 2-run lead.

Luckily, Aaron Judge tied the game quickly after that with a 2-run home run (his 31st on the year!) in the top of the 8th inning.

If momentum was a thing, it would be handedly in the Yankees favor. They fell behind by a tremendous score early, had a big inning of their own, and clawed back to a tie. Especially when going to their closer, Devin Williams, who has "found" himself after a terrible opening act in the pinstripes. If momentum was a thing, this would go down as a Yankees win.

...

Instead, Devin Williams gave up the go-ahead run off a wild pitch to Addison Barger. In that same at-bat, he gave up an insurance run with an RBI single.

The Yankees didn't score in the top of the ninth. They lost 11-9.

The Blue Jays won their 48th game of the year. They now have a 48-38 record.

The Yankees lost their 38th game of the year. They now have a 48-38 record.

The Yankees are now tied for the lead in the American League East, and the Tampa Bay Rays are just a half a game behind.

Player of the Game: Aaron Judge (3-4, 2 Runs, 2-Run Home Run, Double, 3 RBI's, Walk)

My Takes: The Yankees are not a good baseball team right now. And this happens every single year during the summer months.

I'm sorry I'm even saying it, but I'm tired of pretending and trying to look at things those rose-tinted glasses. For whatever reason (and I believe there are two main reasons in particular), the Yankees tend to play just about average baseball during the summer months.

Right now, the Yankees do not have a great pitching staff. It's fine and maybe even good, but it needs help. Max Fried is an ace. Carlos Rodon is an enigma (who has been good recently, but that's subject to change whenever). Clarke Schmidt has been surprisingly consistent (I've never been his biggest fan). But, Will Warren is a rookie who is getting to be known (and figured out) across the league. And, Marcus Stroman is no longer a serious MLB option. Maybe Luis Gil can alleviate some of the concerns when he comes back (though, I wouldn't put my bets on a second year player coming off serious injury), For now, this is a flawed staff where the Yankees will have to bet on winning when Fried is up, Rodon shows up, or Schmidt takes the mound.

The Yankees also do not have a great line-up. Paul Goldschmidt is now under a .290 batting average (now at .286). He's been crashing hard since his well-above .300 average he held through most of May. Besides him, only Aaron Judge (.363) and Cody Bellinger (.267) have batting averages above .260. Next closest are Jasson Dominguez (.256) and DJ LeMahieu (.254).

Just think about that for a moment. A player that Yankees fans universally wanted (and still want) the franchise to buy-out and issue an "early retirement" is also the 4th best hitter, by batting average, as the team has entered July.

I understand batting average is not everything. By some metrics (OPS), the Yankees has a line-up full of players that are above average (league-average OPS is about .715; the Yankees have 7 hitters above this), but I don't believe in this all-in or all-out approach. Hits are important, and the Yankees don't get enough hits day-in and day-out.

Maybe I'm just cynical. But, right now, the Yankees aren't worth watching.

They could turn it around at a moment's notice. And, I really hope they do!

But, for now, I'm not going to complain much about games being on Amazon, or Apple TV, or Roku, or whatever. I'm still going to find a way to "watch" through MLB gamecast, but at least I'm not dedicating my undivided attention to do so.

Enjoy your summers, everybody. Enjoy your families. Enjoy the 4th of July weekend.

Hopefully the Yankees sweep the Mets and make it a great weekend, but I'm not going to hold out hope of that to be a source of extra excitement for now.

Change my mind, Yankees.

I'm begging you.

Next Up:

This series concludes tonight at 7:07 PM. Clarke Schmidt will take the mound for the Yankees. Following tonight's game, the Yankees will play a three-game weekend series (all day games) against the New York Mets at Citi Field.