Judge hits the tiebreaking single in 9th as Yankees rally to avoid sweep with 6-4 win over Blue Jays

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TORONTO (AP) — Aaron Judge broke a 4-all tie with a two-run single in the ninth inning, Juan Soto and Giancarlo Stanton hit solo home runs and the New York Yankees rallied to beat the Toronto Blue Jays 6-4 on Wednesday, avoiding their first sweep of the season.

Toronto Blue Jays’ Daulton Varsho (25) hits a two-run home run during the second inning of a baseball game against the New York Yankees in Toronto, Wednesday, April 17, 2024. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)

Daulton Varsho hit two home runs for the Blue Jays, but Toronto’s four-game winning streak was snapped.

Blue Jays manager John Schneider was ejected by plate umpire Ryan Wills for arguing in the bottom of the ninth.

Victor González (1-0) got one out for the win and Clay Holmes finished for his seventh save in eight chances.

Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Kevin Gausman (34) makes a catch at first base to put out New York Yankees outfielder Alex Verdugo, not shown, during the second inning of a baseball game in Toronto Wednesday, April 17, 2024. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)

Judge was 0 for 12 against Toronto in the series before coming through on a full-count pitch from left-hander Tim Mayza with two outs and the bases loaded.

The Yankees trailed 4-1 through seven innings, but Soto homered off Génesis Cabrera in the eighth and Stanton connected off Erik Swanson (0-1) to begin the ninth.

Toronto Blue Jays’ Daulton Varsho celebrates in the dugout after hitting a two-run homer run during thesecond inning of a baseball game against the New York Yankees in Toronto, Wednesday, April 17, 2024. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)

Swanson was activated from the injured list Tuesday after being sidelined because of a sore forearm. He retired one of the four batters he faced.

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Pinch hitter Jose Trevino greeted Mayza with a tying single over the drawn-in infield. Anthony Volpe fouled out and Soto walked before Judge broke the deadlock with a single down the third-base line.

Varsho hit a two-run homer off Marcus Stroman in the second and added a solo blast off Caleb Ferguson in the seventh. The homers were his third and fourth of the season.

It was Varsho’s first multihomer game of 2024 and second of his career. He also did it with Arizona at San Diego on Sept. 7, 2022.

Blue Jays starter Kevin Gausman finished five innings for the first time in four starts this season after missing most of spring training because of a sore shoulder. He allowed one run and four hits, walked three and matched a season high by striking out six.

Gausman lowered his ERA from 11.57 to 8.16.

Yankees starter Stroman allowed two runs and six hits in 5 1/3 innings against his former team. He walked two and struck out two.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Toronto Blue Jays’ Davis Schneider (36) turns a double play over New York Yankees’ Juan Soto (22) during the third inning of a baseball game in Toronto, Wednesday, April 17, 2024. Yankees’ Aaron Judge was out at first. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)

Yankees: Manager Aaron Boone said RHP Gerrit Cole (elbow inflammation) was scheduled to throw for a second straight day Wednesday. It was Cole’s first time throwing on back-to-back days. … RHP Tommy Kahnle (shoulder) threw a bullpen at New York’s spring training facility in Tampa on Tuesday, Boone said.

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UP NEXT

Yankees: RHP Clarke Schmidt (1-0, 3.68 ERA) is scheduled to start Friday when New York hosts Tampa Bay. The Rays had not announced a starter.

Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Kevin Gausman (34) throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the New York Yankees in Toronto, Wednesday, April 17, 2024. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)

Blue Jays: RHP Yariel Rodríguez (0-0, 2.45 ERA) makes his second career start when Toronto visits San Diego on Friday night. RHP Matt Waldron (0-1, 3.14) is scheduled for the Padres.

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

New York Yankees’ Aaron Judge (99) breaks his bat on a pitch from Toronto Blue Jays’ Kevin Gausman during the third inning of a baseball game in Toronto, Wednesday, April 17, 2024. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)

Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Kevin Gausman throws against the New York Yankees in the first inning of a baseball game in Toronto Wednesday, April 17, 2024. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)

New York Yankees pitcher Marcus Stroman throws against the Toronto Blue Jays in the first inning of a baseball game in Toronto Wednesday, April 17, 2024. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP)