Blue Jays 3, Yankees 2
Jose Bautista belted his major league-leading 39th and 40th home runs of the season to power the Toronto Blue Jays over the New York Yankees 3-2 at the Rogers Centre on Monday night.
Bautista snapped a 2-2 tie with a solo homer in the eighth inning off loser David Robertson (2-4). Scott Downs (5-5) got the win in relief and Kevin Gregg recorded his 28th save.
Bautista’s two-run homer in the third inning gave Toronto a 2-1 lead. Both benches cleared the next time Bautista came to the plate.
New York’s Ivan Nova, making his first major league start, threw a pitch over the head of Bautista. Bautista hollered at Nova and the benches cleared. No punches were thrown and Bautista flew out to center field on the next pitch.
Nova allowed two runs in five-plus innings on six hits and a walk. He escaped a no-out, bases-loaded jam in the first inning unscathed but allowed the two-run homer to Bautista in the third.
The Yankees took a 1-0 lead in the first on an RBI double by Robinson Cano. Jorge Posada’s double in the sixth inning scored Cano to make it 2-2.
Blue Jays shortstop Yunel Escobar and manager Cito Gaston were ejected from the game for arguing a called strike.