The New York Yankees walked into Rogers Centre with momentum from their Wild Card triumph, but by the time the seventh inning was over on Saturday, all that momentum had vanished into thin Canadian air. What began as a tense, close playoff duel unraveled into a one-sided 10-1 rout at the hands of the Toronto Blue Jays, leaving the Yankees stunned and their bullpen exposed.
In front of a raucous Toronto crowd that smelled blood late in the game, the Yankees had their chances but squandered them in cruel fashion. Between wasted opportunities at the plate and questionable bullpen decisions, the opener of this Division Series left New York searching for answers.
Luis Gil gives effort but not length
Forced into the spotlight after the Wild Card grind left the rest of the rotation on short rest, Luis Gil was asked to do more than he realistically could. The rookie didn’t collapse, but he also didn’t provide the kind of length that postseason series demand. Gil lasted just 2.2 innings, giving up four hits and two solo home runs—one to Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and another to Alejandro Kirk, who later added a second blast in garbage time.
To Gil’s credit, he avoided free passes and punched out two hitters, but the damage came quickly. For a team already leaning heavily on its bullpen, his short start meant Aaron Boone was going to have to navigate six-plus innings with a patchwork plan. In October, that usually ends badly.
Yankees waste golden sixth-inning chance
For as shaky as things looked early, the Yankees still had their shot to flip the game on its head in the sixth inning. Down just 2-0, Anthony Volpe ripped a double, Austin Wells followed with a single, and Trent Grisham worked a walk. Suddenly, the Yankees had the bases loaded with nobody out against Kevin Gausman, who looked rattled.
Then came the defining moment. Aaron Judge, the face of the franchise, chased a splitter out of the zone for strike three.
Ben Rice popped out harmlessly, leaving the task to Cody Bellinger. He at least forced in a run with a bases-loaded walk, but Giancarlo Stanton had the chance to make the inning count. With two outs and a reliever on the mound, Stanton went down swinging as another postseason chance slipped away.
One run after loading the bases with no outs isn’t just leaving runs on the table—it’s handing momentum back to the opponent. The Yankees didn’t score again.
Luke Weaver experiment backfires
The real breaking point came in the bottom of the seventh, when Boone rolled the dice with Luke Weaver in a one-run game. Weaver had been shelled by Boston earlier in the week, and trusting him in this spot felt like playing with fire. The flames came fast.
Weaver walked Daulton Varsho, then allowed hard singles to Anthony Santander and Andres Gimenez. He departed at that point, but the damage was done. Nathan Lukes roped a two-run double vs. Fernando Cruz, and the game slipped away. Guerrero Jr.’s sacrifice fly extended Toronto’s lead to 6-1, and Weaver’s outing went from “shaky” to “disastrous.”
Putting him in the game in that spot was the kind of decision that leaves fans muttering under their breath about postseason bullpen hierarchies. Weaver’s December ERA of 9.64 told the story—he’s not the man to steady the ship in October. In truth, Boone might as well have left the matchbook in a fireworks warehouse.
Bullpen can’t stop the bleeding
Before Weaver entered, the bullpen had actually done its job. Tim Hill and Camilo Doval combined for 3.1 scoreless innings to keep the Yankees in striking distance. But Weaver, Fernando Cruz, and Paul Blackburn unraveled it all in quick succession. By the eighth, Toronto piled on four more runs, turning a tense affair into a laugher.
When it ended, the box score said 10-1, but the feel was worse than that. The Yankees didn’t just lose—they let opportunity slip through their hands and watched the Blue Jays grab the momentum of the series.
Game 2 awaits Sunday, but if New York wants to make this a fight, they’ll need sharper at-bats from Judge and Stanton, better performances from their relievers, and a whole lot more poise when the lights are at their brightest.