Andrew Benintendi hits first Yankees HR in much-needed win to avoid sweep

Aaron Boone’s press conference explosion and Aaron Judge’s near-confrontation with Alek Manoah may or may not have contributed to the kind of win the Yankees have been in search of. 

The same could be said of the good vibes brought on by the presence of so many legendary Yankees on Paul O’Neill Day. 

Whatever the reason — and maybe the aforementioned had some role in this win — the Yankees pulled out a significant victory, a 4-2 win that saw them receive strong starting pitching, a big hit, quality defense and a gutsy performance out of the bullpen that enabled them to avoid a four-game sweep at the hands of the Blue Jays. The win allows them to take a deep breath before the two-game Subway Series this week against the Mets, ending a stretch that saw them lose 13 out of 16 games and 20 of 29 since the All-Star break. 

Andrew Benintendi’s two-run, seventh-inning homer into the second deck in right field provided the final margin and the bullpen made it stand up with Lou Trivino getting the last seven out for his first save as a Yankee. Nestor Cortes didn’t figure into the decision, but he pitched like a stopper, limiting the Blue Jays to one run over six innings. 

Benintendi’s first homer as a Yankee, and just his fourth of the season, came right after the Yankees had blown the lead. He drilled an 0-1 Adam Cimber slider over the wall, the big hit Boone’s team had been waiting for. 

A few innings earlier, Manoah hit Judge with a fastball in the shoulder and the two exchanged words. Gerritt Cole and a few other Yankees made their way onto the field, but Judge waived them off and the game resumed shortly. 

The Yankees’ first two runs were both the product of poor Blue Jays defense. In the first inning, Anthony Rizzo came all the way around from first base to score on a DJ LeMahieu single after left fielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr. threw wildly to third trying to nab Rizzo. In the third, a hard-hit single by LeMahieu got by Bo Bichette at shortstop, plating the Yankees’ second run. 

Toronto’s lone run against Cortes came on a Whit Merrifield third-inning home run that nearly stayed in the park. It hit the top of the right-center field fence, bounced high in the air just out of Aaron Hicks’ reach, hit the top of the wall again and went over. 

That was all they were able to manage off Cortes, who was in control over his six innings of work. The potent Blue Jays managed multiple base-runners against Cortes just once, in the fourth when Cortes was able to work around singles by Teoscar Hernandez and Bichette by retiring Matt Chapman on a groundout. 

Cortes closed his outing in style, striking out the heart of the Blue Jays order — Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Alejandro Kirk and Hernandez — in the sixth. But once he left, with some of the air coming of the building, the lead quickly vanished. Jonathan Loaisiga allowed two of the three batters to reach and Wandy Peralta walked light-hitting outfielder Jackie Bradley Jr. with the bases loaded, forcing in the tying run. 

Fortunately, the Yankees escaped the inning without trailing, as Peralta retired Gurriel on a groundout and Trivino got Guerrero on a groundout. A few minutes later, the Stadium would be loud again. The Yankees were ahead — and this time for good.