Prior to Game 3 of the ALDS between the Yankees and Blue Jays on Tuesday, manager Aaron Boone spoke about a variety of topics…
Dance with who brung ya
If the Yankees survive elimination and force a must-win Game 4 in the Bronx on Wednesday, they'll do so with the same exact lineup that placed them in a daunting 0-2 series hole this past weekend.
With veteran right-hander Shane Bieber slated to start for the Blue Jays, the Yankees decided to leave their batting order untouched. For a third straight game, they'll trust Trent Grisham in the leadoff spot, Ben Rice batting cleanup at first base, Giancarlo Stanton hitting fifth as the designated hitter, and Austin Wells handling catching duties.
When asked about deploying an identical lineup and weighing lefty-righty matchups, Boone didn't mince words. He wants his best hitters in the box right away, even if some metrics recommended a shuffling.
"I'm putting out there what I think has the best chance to be successful against Bieber," Boone said. "I understand in the short time at the back-end of this season, he's been a reverse-split. Throughout his career, he's been very neutral — some years, one way or the other… But the people they have in their bullpen, the lefties are very lefty specialist-type guys. Having the threat of a couple of our righties is a presence I like to have."
One of the righty bench options will be Paul Goldschmidt who, in a tiny six at-bat sample, has three hits off of Bieber. He and Stanton (3-for-15) happen to be the only Yankees players with multiple knocks against the former AL Cy Young winner. Aaron Judge is a measly 1-for-13 with eight strikeouts.
Boone still prefers Rice over Goldschmidt at first, and based on the power potential, the choice makes sense. But the rookie infielder hasn't exactly posed a threat since ripping a home run in Game 2 of the Wild Card series against the Red Sox. He looked wobbly at the plate in Toronto, striking out four times with no luck against off-speed pitches.
"He's just been more than a dangerous hitter, especially here down the stretch," Boone said of Rice. "He kind of killed the ball all year against right-handed pitching. He's just a real threat in the middle of the order. Goldy has that presence looming over there. Hopefully I can get him into a good matchup and even better than that, I'm putting him in late because we have a lead and he's playing defense at first."
With no margin for error, the Yankees can ill afford to fall behind early and look off-balance. They were held scoreless through five innings in Games 1 and 2 at Rogers Centre, and their swing-early-and-often approaches to starters Kevin Gausman and Trey Yesavage were fruitless.
The Yankees also must buck the strikeout trend. They've already whiffed 21 times in the series, and with 50 total punchouts in five playoff games this season, they're once again resembling an offense that can't deliver hits in bunches under bright October lights.
Running out of time
History has shown that 0-2 LDS deficits aren't death sentences — 10 teams have defied the odds and advanced to the LCS, and the most recent instance came in 2017, with the Yankees' three-win comeback over the then-Indians.
But the Yankees' pair of road losses eight years ago weren't lopsided and humiliating like their latest road letdowns in Toronto. The Blue Jays flexed their muscles with home-field advantage, scoring a whopping 23 runs on 29 hits.
As if there wasn't enough pressure on the Yankees' bats to adequately produce, Carlos Rodón is tasked with do-or-die stakes on the mound against a lineup — from top to bottom — that causes fits. The trick will be containing a red-hot Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who's hit a lifetime .308 (203 plate appearances) at Yankee Stadium and .588 (21 plate appearances) against the veteran southpaw.
"I think we'll respond well," Boone said. "We've handled adverse situations well all year, navigated that. It's a group that's very close together. They trust in one another. That's important this time of year… But it all comes down to playing well, and I feel like our guys are in the right frame of mind to go do that."
While both teams finished the regular season tied atop the AL East with 94 wins, the head-to-head tiebreaker favored the Blue Jays, who thumped the Yankees with 10 wins in 15 meetings. Only time will tell if some home cooking keeps the Yankees' hopes alive for at least one more day.