About Yesterday: DH Sweep!

About Yesterday: Yankees Sweep Doubleheader Against Blue Jays

By Derek McAdam

April 28, 2025

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The New York Yankees on Sunday swept a doubleheader against the Toronto Blue Jays, winning the three-game series and improving to 17-11 on the season. Here is a recap of both games from yesterday.

Game 1: Yankees 11, Blue Jays 2

Quick Stats: W: Max Fried (5-0) 6 IP,  6 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 3 K

                     L: Kevin Gausman (2-3) 2.2 IP, 3 H, 6 ER, 5 BB, 2 K

Home Runs: Anthony Volpe (5)

The Big Story:

The Yankees were seeking to rebound after Friday night’s heartbreaking loss to the Blue Jays and would need a very good day of baseball in order to secure a series win.

Both teams were in for a long day of baseball yesterday, but it seemed as if it was going to be a very long day for Yankee fans very early. In in 1st, after one run crossed the plate following another error from Oswaldo Cabrera, Max Fried had the bases loaded, but managed to escape without a further harm.

In the 3rd, the Yankees got on the board with a sacrifice fly from Cody Bellinger. But, the damage was not done just yet. Gausman loaded the bases for Jazz Chisholm Jr., who walked on four straight pitches to give the Yankees a 2-1 lead. The next batter, Volpe, would also walk to give the Yankees a 3-1 lead. But then the Yankees busted the game open when Austin Wells hit a three-run double to give the Yankees a 6-1 lead.

Gausman started off the 3rd inning with 18 pitches thrown through two innings. Without getting out of the inning, he finished his day with 71 total pitches.

The Yankees were able to add more runs in the 5th, beginning with a solo home run from Volpe, his 5th of the season. After Wells and Jasson Dominguez both reached base, Cabrera hit a two-run double down the right field line to give the Yankees a commanding 9-1 lead.

It was not a pretty start to the afternoon, but Fried gave the Yankees six solid innings of work, which was necessary considering there was still at least 12 more innings of baseball that had to be played yesterday.

The Yankees continued to pile on an additional run in the 6th, beginning with a Paul Goldschmidt RBI double to score Bellinger and increase the lead to 10-1. Chisholm also got another RBI in the 8th to make it 11-1 Yankees.

Yerry De los Santos pitched the 7th and 8th innings unscathed for the Yankees. However, Tyler Matzek pitched the 9th and gave up a run, but was able to get out of the inning without further issue, securing the Yankees’ Game 1 victory.

Player of the Game:

Wells’ bases-clearing double in the 3rd was the big hit that busted this game wide open for the Yankees, and they didn’t look back from here. It was nice to see him get a big hit such as this one, especially after a nine-pitch at-bat.

Notable Performances:

Similarly to Wells, it’s nice seeing Volpe start to see the ball a little better. When he starts driving the ball the other way, it is usually a sign that he is putting together good at-bats and seeing the ball better. Aaron Judge and Goldschmidt also had multi-hit games for the Yankees, again.

Better to Forget: Every starter in the lineup at least scored a run, so I can’t say this was a bad game for anyone.

Game 2: Yankees 5, Blue Jays 1

Quick Stats: W: Tim Hill (3-0): 1 IP, 1 H

                     L: Chris Bassit (2-2): 5.2 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 5 K

Home Runs: NYY: Trent Grisham (7), Aaron Judge (8), J.C. Escarra (1) TOR: Anthony Santander (3)

The Big Story:

Similarly to Game 1, the Blue Jays had a couple of opportunities to score in the 1st inning, putting two runners on. However, Clarke Schmidt was able to strike out George Springer and Andres Gimenez to get out of the inning unscathed.

But in the bottom of the inning,  Grisham hit a lead-off home run to put the Yankees up 1-0. The home run was his seventh go the season.

The Yankees also had a prime opportunity in the bottom of the 2nd, putting the first two runners of the inning on, but failed to score any runs.

In the 3rd, Santander hit a solo home run into the second deck to tie the game at 1-1. It would ultimately be the only run of the game for the Blue Jays.

Schmidt did not give up many runs, but his biggest issue was the inability to control the strike zone. Fortunately for the Yankees, he was still able to give them five innings of work.

In the 6th, on the first pitch of the inning, Judge hit a solo home run into the right field seats to give the Yankees another lead, making the new score 2-1. Just a little while later, Dominguez hit an RBI double into the left field gap to score Chisholm and make the new score 3-1 in favor of the Yankees. After the Blue Jays made a pitching change, Escarra lined the first pitch into right center field to score Dominguez, making the new score 4-1.

In the 8th, Escarra hit a no-doubt home run off former Yankee Chad Green to give the Yankees a 5-1 lead. The home run was also Escarra’s first MLB home run. And while Luke Weaver was not pitching in the 9th for a save, he still came on and pitched a scoreless inning to give the Yankees a much-needed victory.

Player of the Game:

It is a tough decision, but I’m going to give this honor to Escarra. Not only did he have a big hit to add an insurance run in the 6th, but he added another insurance run in the 8th, one that he will never forget.

Notable Performances: Volpe continues to look good at the plate, and Judge also finds ways to continue to get on base. The bullpen also locked it down for the Yankees to secure a series victory.

Better to Forget:

Just because the Yankees swept the double-header, I won’t give this dishonor out to any Yankee. I’m sure the entire team is glad they walked away with a crucial series win.

My Take:

This was a long day of baseball, but it was an interesting day of baseball. Yankee pitching really did a solid job this entire series (yes, even Friday night) against the Blue Jays, who have been a huge disappointment offensively so far this season. Fried had another solid start, and the Yankees are 6-0 this season whenever he takes the mound.

Schmidt was not great by any means. He struggled to find the strike zone and walked way too many batters. But, he was able to get out of innings without runs crossing the plate, with the only run he allowed being a solo home run. I like Schmidt, but he is going to have to show more efficiency in his next few starts. The Yankees are very lucky they got five innings out of him last night.

Offensively, the Yankees showed very good poise in Game 1 against Gausman. I was thrilled to see them take Gausman deep in counts, and I was even starting to feel bad for Gausman as his nightmare of an inning went on. Gausman would get ejected as he was taken out of the game for arguing balls and strikes, which I would assume was just him blowing off some steam.

But even in the second game, the Yankees were not as patient at the plate, but they were still able to work some counts and see many pitches. The more they work counts, the more successful this team will be.

Overall, this was a great day for the Yankees. And although we are not even finished with April, I thought it was a big couple of wins for the team. Not only did they secure the series win, but they carry huge momentum going into this week’s series against the Baltimore Orioles, another team who is struggling so far this season. But one other crucial aspect is that every game against an AL East opponent matters, no matter what time of the season it is. So far this year, the Yankees are 6-2 against AL East opponents, a solid start.

What’s Next?

The Yankees will head to Baltimore for a three-game series against the Orioles, starting tonight. Will Warren is scheduled to start for the Yankees, while Tomoyuki Sugano is scheduled to go for the Orioles. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 p.m. EST from Camden Yards.