BRONX -- There was no Aaron Judge magic this time around. No five-run comeback either.
Yankee Stadium was quiet on Wednesday with so little for the home fans to cheer about.
The Toronto Blue Jays set the early tone in Game 4 and didn’t let up in a 5-2 victory that sealed the American League Division Series in four games and ended New York’s season.
Nathan Lukes had a two-run single and eight Toronto relievers held the Yankees to six hits as the Blue Jays reached the AL Championship Series for the first time since 2016.
“It feels amazing,” said Blue Jays slugger Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who hit .529 in the series. “I don’t have words to explain how I feel right now.”
The first road victory of the series prevented a decisive Game 5 back at Rogers Centre on Friday. Instead the Blue Jays can rest ahead of Game 1 at home on Sunday against the Detroit Tigers or the Seattle Mariners.
Addison Barger had three hits for Toronto and Ernie Clement scored twice and had two hits to boost his series average to an eye-popping .643.
Seranthony Dominguez - Toronto’s third reliever - got five outs for the win and Jeff Hoffman picked up the final four outs for the save.
“We put the ball in play when we needed to and we struck guys out when we needed to, which is kind of what you’re shooting for,” said Blue Jays manager John Schneider.
Judge had an RBI in the ninth inning for New York and Ryan McMahon hit a solo homer in the third.
“The ending is the worst, right?” said manager Aaron Boone, who guided the Yankees to the pennant last year. “Especially when you know you have a really good group.”
Toronto scored 23 runs over two victories at Rogers Centre last weekend. New York responded by pulling off a five-run comeback in Game 3 - keyed by a three-run Judge homer - on Tuesday.
Louis Varland, who gave up two homers a night earlier, started Game 4 and was followed by Mason Fluharty, Dominguez, Eric Lauer, Yariel Rodriguez, Brendon Little, Braydon Fisher and finally Hoffman.
“Everyone else saw it as a bullpen day but we saw it as a team day,” Schneider said in the locker-room as champagne was poured over his head.
The Blue Jays advanced to their eighth ALCS in team history. The other ALDS is going the distance with the Mariners set to host the Tigers on Friday at T-Mobile Park.
Like it was a night earlier, “O Canada” was booed lustily by many in the sellout crowd of 47,823.
The Blue Jays attacked Yankees starter Cam Schlittler in the first inning with all three hits barely landing inside the foul line.
George Springer led off with a double and scored on a Guerrero single. Only a nice sliding catch by left-fielder Cody Bellinger on a Daulton Varsho flare kept Toronto from a big inning.
McMahon tied it with his first career homer but the Blue Jays regained the lead in the fifth.
Clement and Andres Gimenez hit back-to-back singles to put runners on the corners. Springer hit a sacrifice fly to plate Clement and make it 2-1.
In the seventh, the Blue Jays caught a break when New York second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. was handcuffed by a hard one-hopper from Gimenez.
Clement moved to third and Gimenez later stole second, with both runners coming in on a Lukes single off Devin Williams.
“I was thinking see the heater, hit the heater,” Lukes said. “He gave it to me and I came through.”
The Yankees threatened in the bottom half. With Judge looming in the on-deck circle, Little got Trent Grisham to pop up.
There was more tension in the eighth as Fisher gave up a two-out single and a walk before being relieved by Hoffman. Pinch-hitter Ben Rice walked to bring Austin Wells to the plate with the bases loaded.
Hoffman got him on a flyout and Yankees fans started heading for the exits.
“Credit to the Blue Jays and the year they’ve had,” Boone said. “They beat us this series, simple as that.”
Some interesting decisions await for the Blue Jays. Veteran starters Chris Bassitt and Max Scherzer were left off the ALDS roster but could return for the ALCS.
And star shortstop Bo Bichette has started hitting and light running as he continues to progress after spraining his left knee a month ago.
But those roster decisions will wait until later in the week. For now, the Blue Jays will savour an accomplishment nine years in the making.
By Gregory Strong, The Canadian Press
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 8, 2025.
