Blue Jays experience a Bronx bummer in loss to Yankees in ALDS rematch

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Published May 18, 2026  •  4 minute read

Yankees' Anthony Volpe slides into home plate to score past Jays' Brandon Valenzuela during the fourth inning at Yankee Stadium on May 18, 2026. Ishika Samant/Getty Images

When they last visited the Bronx Zoo, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. could be seen and heard taunting the New York Yankees by uttering a phrase David (Big Papi) Ortiz popularized before he took his talents to TV.

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“Daaaaaa Yankees lose!” Vlad Jr. told Ortiz and his FOX Sports crew after Toronto had eliminated the Yankees in four games in the ALDS.

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The phrase was a mocking twist on longtime Yankees radio broadcaster John Sterling’s signature “Theeeeee Yankees win!” saying.

Sadly, Sterling passed away earlier this month.

He would have enjoyed watching Monday’s series opener in what amounted to a rematch of last fall’s matchup, minus the high stakes.

Any visit to the Big Apple provides baseball with its biggest backdrop and while the series opener didn’t have that same post-season feel, the evening had more than its share of memorable and epic sequences.

For starters, the evening marked the big-league debut of left-hander Adam Macko, who entered the game with two outs and a runner at first in the sixth inning with the Jays leading by two.

He retired the first hitter he faced on a groundout to end the frame, a moment to relish for someone who represented Canada at the World Baseball Classic.

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He was back on the mound to start the seventh as he faced the Yankees’ top of the order.

Two up, two down for Macko, who was relieved for righty Yariel Rodriguez with right-handed hitter Aaron Judge up next.

Judge lined a single before Y-Rod gave up a game-tying two-run homer to Cody Bellinger.

Let the second-guessing begin, an inevitable exercise when things go askew.

Things went completely off the rails after Rodriquez gave up a two-run homer to Jazz Chisholm Jr.

Four hitters faced by Y-Rod, four runs surrendered before the third out was mercifully recorded.

What began as a two-run Jays lead turned into a two-run deficit.

In a game of ebbs and flows, the Yankees outhomered the Jays, 3-2.

More importantly, they parlayed their four-run seventh inning into a tense 7-6 win that ended on a Vlad Jr. groundout.

The following are three takeaways on a night Jays’ leadoff hitter George Springer recorded his 1,500th-career hit, a night the veteran would also go deep for his third dinger of the season and first since March 30.

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1. Two good to be true

When it comes to power, Ben Rice has been among the most lethal weapons at the plate in baseball.

When it comes to name recognition and importance, no one on the Blue Jays comes close to Vlad Jr.

Vlad Jr. batted second in Sunday’s series finale in Detroit and was back in the No. 2 hole in the Bronx.

Also batting second was Rice.

After the Yankees took a quick 1-0 lead, Rice sent a ball into left field for a double.

Vlad Jr. took the opening pitch he saw and while he did make solid contact he also was responsible for the inning’s first out.

The No. 2 slot in the lineup for the respective teams became the game within the game.

Rice’s hit raised his OPS to an MLB-leading 1.089.

Rice went 1-for-5 on the night, while Vlad Jr. had a 1-for-4 evening.

Blue Jays’ Vladimir Guerrero Jr. slides into third base past Yankees’ Amed Rosario during the fourth inning at Yankee Stadium on May 18, 2026. Ishika Samant/Getty Images

2. Welcome back Corbin

Having grown up in Syracuse, it was a homecoming of sorts for Patrick Corbin, the Jays’ starter as Toronto began its four-game stay in the Big Apple.

His start in the series opener began on an inauspicious note.

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One pitch into his outing and Corbin and the Jays were trailing 1-0 after Paul Goldschmidt crushed his fifth homer of the season.

Despite yielding some solid contact, Corbin gave up the lone run.

The second inning was equally stressful as the veteran left-hander had runners on the corner with one out.
On his 31st pitch of the game, Corbin recorded a key strikeout.

He then faced Goldschmidt for the second time in as many innings.

Corbin fell behind 3-1 in the count before he walked Goldschmidt to load the bases.

The game’s first of many big moments arrived when Rice stepped up to the plate.

The count went full.

Corbin got out of the inning unscathed when he induced a groundout.

The fourth was a wild and cruel inning for Corbin.

Turned out it was also his last inning in a 79-pitch outing that featured just about everything.

When Corbin’s night had ended, the game was tied.

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3. Weathers Forecast

Yankees starter Ryan Weathers has ties with the Blue Jays.

Back in 1988, the Jays used a third-round draft pick to select David Weathers, Ryan’s dad, who would go on to earn a World Series ring with the Yankees.

The best of Ryan Weathers was on display in the third inning when he struck out the side.

After retiring 10 hitters in a row, Weathers gave up back-to-back singles in the fourth inning.

Two outs later, Weathers was victimized by Ernie Clement, who sent an 0-2 pitch deep into left field for a three-run homer, Clement’s third blast of the season.

Clement knocked in four runs.

Up Next

A battle of righties is on tap Tuesday (7:05 p.m.) pitting Toronto’s Dylan Cease (3-1, 2.41 ERA) versus New York’s Will Warren (5-1, 3.42 ERA).

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