NEW YORK – Trey Yesavage was never going to pitch in Game 4 of the American League Division Series last fall, but his job that fateful night was to sell the possibility that he might. So, after manager John Schneider floated the idea during his pre-game media availability, the rookie righty walked from the third-base dugout to the visitors’ bullpen in left-centre field, trying to make sure the New York Yankees noticed.
“I needed to make sure I kept a straight face and was, like, serious, because all I wanted to do is just laugh at what was going on,” he recalled this week. “I was definitely taking my time. It was a slower walk. I don’t know, it was so weird for me to be doing that.”
As things turned out, the Toronto Blue Jays didn’t need him anyway during a well-executed bullpen day that clinched the series, but they certainly did Wednesday night after a pair of dispiriting losses in the Bronx. Finally making his Yankee Stadium debut, no subterfuge this time, Yesavage did not disappoint, shaking off a two-hour 11-minute rain delay to outduel fellow phenom Cam Schlittler with six shutout innings in a 2-1 victory.
Just as he was in the post-season, Yesavage was simply dominant, pinning the game under his thumb from his first pitch to his last, allowing only two hits, one on a Trent Grisham blooper to left that dropped in between Kazuma Okamoto and Yohendrick Pinango after they both pulled up looking at one another.
No matter, Yesavage cleaned up that mess while striking out eight, including Aaron Judge three times. His fastball sat at 95.2, up 1.3 m.p.h. from his season average, he got five of his 13 whiffs with his slider and was never once in a hint of trouble.
Schlittler, dominating to this point with his three fastballs moving in different directions, had to dodge far more traffic and for the most part did, stranding runners in the third, fourth, fifth and sixth innings before the Blue Jays finally managed to eke out some offence in the seventh.
Ernie Clement singled and Jesus Sanchez walked to open the frame before Brandon Valenzuela dropped a perfect bunt that both Paul Goldschmidt and Austin Wells tried to pick up and dropped, leaving the bases loaded.
Andres Gimenez then fouled off five pitches between 97.3 and 99.3 m.p.h. before working an 11-pitch walk that opened the scoring and ended Schlittler’s night. Jake Bird came in and limited further damage to a Vladimir Guerrero Jr. sacrifice fly to the wall in right but the Blue Jays made the lead hold, even if there was some adventure in getting there.
Mason Fluharty took over in the top of the seventh and watched a one-out Jazz Chisholm Jr. blooper fall in beyond a charging Gimenez as Daulton Varsho looked on, and then saw Goldschmidt’s flare to right drop in front of a diving Sanchez, who had to leave the game.
Jeff Hoffman came in to kill that rally, getting Amed Rosario to fly out and Ryan McMahon on a dribbler in front of the plate. After Tyler Rogers worked a clean eighth, Louis Varland had to work around a Cody Bellinger double and a Chisholm single, on a chopper that he bobbled, with one out, allowing Goldschmidt’s RBI groundout before striking out Rosario to end it.
