Gleyber Torres the hero as Yankees beat Blue Jays for 10th straight win
TORONTO — The Yankees have been waiting for more than two years for the old Gleyber Torres to show up.
He gave another indication that might be closer to happening on Monday against the Blue Jays, when he drove in all three runs in a 3-2 win at Rogers Centre.
And it helped the Yankees to their 10th straight win. They’ve also won 12 of 13 to open up a 2 ½-game lead on second-place Toronto in the AL East.
“I don’t think it proves anything, especially here in May,’’ Aaron Boone said of the win over one of their top rivals. “We’re trying to rack up as many wins as we can. … We feel like we have a chance to be a really good team and are a really good team.”
To follow through on that, they’ll need to beat the Blue Jays.
Torres got the Yankees’ offense started with a two-run homer in the fourth inning and delivered the winning run in the top of the ninth with a two-out RBI single.
“He has the ability to use the entire field,’’ Boone said of the second baseman who not long ago seemed like one of the premier hitters in the game. “When he walked up there, I was thinking ‘There’s no one better right now’ and he put a great swing [on it].”
“Games like that, when we face really good teams, I have the opportunity to try to be myself,’’ Torres said. “I try to be in control and do the little things. … I just want to put the ball in play.”
Chad Green picked up the save with a scoreless ninth.
The winning rally started with a Giancarlo Stanton single to center off Yimi Garcia.
Tim Locastro pinch ran for Stanton and stole second with Josh Donaldson at the plate. Donaldson grounded out and Aaron Hicks followed with a strikeout to bring up Torres, whose base hit to center easily scored the speedy Locastro.
The victory was just the latest for a Yankee team that came into Monday’s game having swept three consecutive series.
And they brought their full roster north of the border after concerns that was not going to be the case due to the possibility of some players being unvaccinated for COVID.
Jordan Montgomery was stellar for much of his five-plus innings, but he gave up a pair of runs on four hits in the bottom of the fourth inning to allow the Blue Jays to tie the game.
Jonathan Loaisiga, Miguel Castro and Clay Holmes kept the game tied.
Montgomery got off to a good start, aided by a terrific play by Stanton’s glove in the second.
With one out, Matt Chapman hit a rocket toward the wall, but Stanton made an outstanding leaping grab to rob Chapman of an extra-base hit for the second out.
The Yankees took the lead in the top of the fourth.
Donaldson singled with one out and Torres’ opposite field two-out homer gave the Yankees a 2-0 lead. It was Torres’ third home run of the season and second in four games.
The Yankees’ offense went silent after Torres’ blast.
Isiah Kiner-Falefa reached on an error before Toronto pitchers retired 13 batters in a row — until Stanton’s single in the ninth.
The Blue Jays came right back in the bottom of the fourth against Montgomery, but the lefty pitched into the sixth.
Toronto threatened in the sixth with a leadoff single by Bo Bichette that ended Montgomery’s night.
Loaisiga entered and walked Vladimir Guerrero Jr. on four pitches before the right-hander got Lourdes Gurriel Jr. to ground into a double play and Chapman to strike out.
Castro entered in the seventh and walked Alejandro Kirk. After the right-hander retired Santiago Espinal and Raimel Tapia, Tyler Heineman doubled down the right-field line, sending Kirk to third.
Holmes came in to face George Springer and got him to ground out.
In the eighth, Holmes allowed one-out hits to Guerrero and Gurriel before Chapman hit into a double play.
