Recap: Toronto vs. NY Yankees
Sports Network | September 25, 2008
Toronto, ON (Sports Network) - Roy Halladay was brilliant on the hill en route to picking up his 20th win of the season as Toronto downed New York, 8-2, in the finale of their three-game series at Rogers Centre.
The right-hander allowed just two runs on six hits and hurled his ninth complete game of the year, tying Milwaukee's CC Sabathia for the major league lead. Halladay (20-11) also beat the Yankees for the fifth time this season.
This marks the second time in his big-league career that the Blue Jays ace has reached the 20-win mark. Halladay earned a career-best 22 wins in 2003 when he won the AL Cy Young Award.
Vernon Wells homered and drove in four runs for the Blue Jays, who snapped a three-game skid.
Robinson Cano was 1-for-4 with an RBI single for the Yankees, who were eliminated from postseason contention Tuesday and lost for the first time in eight games.
Carl Pavano (4-2) was touched for five runs on eight hits in just 3 2/3 innings to pick up the loss.
Trailing 1-0, the Jays took over with a pair of runs in the home-half of the third. Alex Rios slapped a two-out single to left and swiped second before Wells lined his 18th homer of the year just over the wall in left.
Toronto continued to pull away with three more runs in the fourth. Three consecutive one-out singles, by Travis Snider, Gregg Zaun and Joe Inglett, put one run on the board. After Marco Scutaro grounded into a fielder's choice, Rios walked to load the bases and Wells followed with a two-run single to left that made it a 5-1 game.
The Yankees got one run back in the fifth. Cody Ransom walked, moved to third on Melky Cabrera's single and crossed the plate when Francisco Cervelli grounded into a 6-4-3 double play.
The Blue Jays got that run right back and more in the bottom of the fifth off Dan Giese. Scott Rolen got on with a one-out single and raced home on Snider's double to the gap in right-center. Zaun followed with another double and Toronto led 7-2.
Toronto added another insurance run in the seventh after Zaun and Inglett worked consecutive one-out walks and Scutaro followed with an RBI single.
The Yankees jumped on top with a run in the third when Brett Gardner ripped a two-out double to right and Cano followed with an RBI single.
The Blue Jays announced a contract extension for manager Cito Gaston through the 2010 season before the game. Gaston, 64, entered the season as club ambassador and special assistant to the president and CEO but returned to the dugout for the Blue Jays after John Gibbons was fired on June 20. The Blue Jays have gone 49-36 under Gaston...Yankees closer Mariano Rivera returned to New York on Thursday for end-of-season medical tests. He is expected to rejoin the team Friday in Boston for the final series of the regular season...Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter missed his third straight start Thursday. Jeter was hit on the hand by a pitch Saturday, but came on as a defensive replacement in the ninth inning of Tuesdays game...Alex Rodriguez and Johnny Damon were also held out by the Yankees for the second straight game Thursday.
