TORONTO — The Yankees lost here Wednesday, snapping an 11-game winning streak. It was a closely fought game, as many of the contests between them and the Blue Jays have been this season.
Trailing by 2-1 within the ninth inning, the Yankees loaded the bases with two outs but fell a step wanting tying the rating when shortstop Isiah Kiner-Falefa smacked a ground ball to 3rd baseman Matt Chapman, whose bouncing throw was scooped up at first by Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who showed off his flexibility by doing the splits.
“I used to be very mad at myself,” Chapman, a three-time Gold Glove winner, said of the throw, “after which very excited.”
The Yankees lingered on the sector as they challenged the play, but they ultimately packed up the visitor’s clubhouse and headed home. Even with a defeat, that they had won the three-game set, maintaining the most effective record in baseball (18-7) and handing the Blue Jays their first series lack of the season.
“Winning 11 in a row, that’s no small task,” Yankees third baseman Josh Donaldson said. “It doesn’t matter who you’re playing. This can be a really good ball club, and we got here in here and played very well. Losing a one-run game on the road and we had a possibility within the ninth to go ahead, I like our possibilities. Today we weren’t in a position to money it in, but the subsequent time I’ll expect us to.”
One month into the season, the Yankees have shown they’re different from the Yankees teams of the recent past. Their pitching was their best asset in 2021, once they were 92-70 and fell to Boston within the American League wild-card game, yet it has been even stronger this season. Their offense is more dynamic; they strike out less and hit the ball harder. Their defense has made probably the most improvement, going from one among the worst in Major League Baseball to the most effective up to now.
The 2022 M.L.B. Season
A season that was unsure is suddenly in full gear.
In every way, Manager Aaron Boone said this week, the 2022 Yankees are higher. And despite some early fears, they’re doing it with a full roster, even in Toronto, as your complete team has been vaccinated.
“We’re a greater and more versatile offense,” Boone said. “We run the bases higher. There’s no doubt that we catch the ball higher and have a probability to be a excellent defensive team this 12 months. Pitching was type of our calling card last 12 months. Yet with that said, I feel like we now have a greater pitching staff top to bottom this 12 months.”
Through the winning streak, the Yankees demonstrated they might win in a wide range of ways: by scoring numerous runs, by winning close contests with good pitching and fielding, by counting on more parts of the roster. Granted, many of the opponents of late had losing records and weren’t expected to compete for the postseason — the Baltimore Orioles, the Cleveland Guardians and the Kansas City Royals — but that’s the reason matchups against the Blue Jays are all the time so telling.
On Monday, the Yankees beat the Blue Jays at their very own game. Through Wednesday, Toronto was 10-3 in one-run games, playing and winning more nail biters than anyone in baseball and showing that their pitching and fielding were capable. The Yankees won, 3-2, due to a solid start from Jordan Montgomery (two runs over five innings) and a stout effort from the bullpen. All of their runs were driven in by second baseman Gleyber Torres, who endured the worst season of his profession in 2021.
“The swing didn’t really work with my hands, and my lower body was going the alternative way,” Torres said of a swing that last 12 months produced a .259 average, nine home runs and a .697 on-base plus slugging percentage, all profession lows for a full season. “I’m just now in additional control.”
In a 9-1 win Tuesday, Yankees starter Jameson Taillon, further faraway from his ankle surgery last October, was stout again, allowing only one run over six innings. And the Yankees’ offense was powered by outfielder Aaron Judge, who smashed his ninth home run of the 12 months. After placing a big bet on himself by turning down a seven-year, $213.5 million contract extension before the regular season began, Judge was hitting .293 with a team-leading 1.009 O.P.S. through 24 games.
“It’s just 11 games, but we’ve got more work to do,” Judge said of the team’s winning streak, later noting that he was glad to be freed from nagging injuries up to now this season. “A number of good things happened. We showed what this team is made from, but we showed we will win games with our pitching and our offense. We will win with small ball or the massive fly. We’ve just got to maintain staying consistent.”
Regardless that the Yankees’ offense sputtered Wednesday against Blue Jays starter Yusei Kikuchi, the team nearly got here back against closer Jordan Romano, who leads the key leagues with 12 saves. Against a potent Blue Jays lineup that may welcome back the injured slugger Teoscar Hernández this weekend, Yankees starter Nestor Cortes Jr. battled shaky command, walking 4 and coughing up two runs over 4 innings.
Still, the Yankees’ rotation ranked fourth in baseball (with a 2.85 earned run average) through Wednesday. When including the bullpen, the pitching staff (2.60 E.R.A.) trailed only the Los Angeles Dodgers (2.21) in M.L.B. Five more regular-season months remain, but that’s already an improvement for the Yankees, who were sixth in E.R.A. (3.74) last season.
Essentially the most noticeable upgrades, though, have been on offense and defense. By subtracting plodding sluggers who were worse defenders, comparable to first baseman Luke Voit and catcher Gary Sánchez, the Yankees traded for catcher Jose Trevino and Kiner-Falefa and re-signed Anthony Rizzo. Kiner-Falefa, who was hitting a team-high .295, and Rizzo, who has nine home runs, strike out less often.
Paired with Kyle Higashioka, the Yankees’ catching duo is adept at calling games and framing pitches. A Gold Glove third baseman in 2020, Kiner-Falefa allowed Torres, who struggled at shortstop last season, to maneuver back to second base. Rizzo, a four-time Gold Glove winner, saves his infielders together with his scoops and footwork at first base. Donaldson is sure-handed, and the versatile infielder D.J. LeMahieu is healthier than he was last season.
Based on some advanced metrics, the Yankees’ defense has jumped from among the many worst in baseball into the highest 10 this season. The trickledown effects will show all year long: Higher fielding means fewer extra pitches, fewer runs and more wins. The Yankees’ 73 unearned runs allowed last 12 months were the eighth most in baseball. They’re on a pace to chop that number in half this season.
Entering this season, the Yankees were expected to contend for the playoffs despite the same forged of characters, few big-name acquisitions and questions on whether or not they had done enough to enhance within the off-season. The outcomes bode well.
“My mind has never modified because the first day of spring training,” Judge said. “I do know what this team has and what they’re able to. To be honest, I don’t really read what the experts have gotten to say about how this team goes to perform. We’re just going to go on the market and put within the work, and the outcomes are going to point out up.”
