Jul 31, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; New York Yankees third base DJ LeMahieu (26) and third base Jazz Chisholm Jr. (13) celebrate a victory against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Since entering the visitors’ dugout at Boston’s Fenway Park on Sunday, Jazz Chisholm Jr. has made a memorable first impression for the New York Yankees.
After hitting four home runs for his new team, Chisholm makes his home debut Friday night when the Yankees host the Toronto Blue Jays and try to extend their winning streak to six games.
Chisholm was acquired Saturday from the Miami Marlins in exchange for three prospects and made his debut in center field in Sunday’s 8-2 win over the Boston Red Sox. He played his first three career games at third base during a three-game sweep of the Philadelphia Phillies and recorded back-to-back multi-homer games while driving in eight runs in a 14-4 win on Monday and a 7-6 victory in 12 innings on Tuesday.
“This is what I live for. I love the lights, I love the big crowds, it’s super exciting,” Chisholm said Tuesday of joining the Yankees. “I feel like that complements my game, being in the lights, being in the big moments.”
Chisholm is 7-for-19 (.368) with the Yankees after hitting .249 in 101 games with the Marlins this season. He had one hit in Wednesday’s 6-5 win that featured a big day from veteran DJ LeMahieu, who hit a grand slam and drove in a career-high six runs.
The sweep in Philadelphia gave New York five straight wins for the first time since winning a season-high eight straight from May 29 to June 6 as part of their 45-19 start. Before winning their final five games, the Yankees had slumped to 10-23.
“I feel a little better, but we also know we’re a long way from where we want to be and the finish line,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said.
The Yankees will play 15 straight games against teams below .500, and the Blue Jays are coming off three-of-four losses in Baltimore.
The Blue Jays are playing 10 straight games against the Yankees and Orioles, and finished their trip to Baltimore with a 10-4 loss on Wednesday. Addison Barger hit his first two career homers in the series, and Joey Loperfido went 1-for-5 in his Toronto debut on Wednesday after being acquired from the Houston Astros in exchange for Yusei Kikuchi.
George Springer had two hits and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. extended his hitting streak to 14 games. Guerrero is batting .500 (26-for-52) during the longest streak by a Blue Jay this season.
“We’re not in the position we’d like to be in as a team, as an organization right now, but there’s always a way to get something good out of something,” Springer told reporters before Wednesday’s game. “There’s a lot of guys that are going to gain valuable experience and, in my opinion, there’s no substitute for that.”
Toronto’s revised lineup will face Marcus Stroman (7-5, 3.64 ERA), who is 0-2 with a 5.64 ERA in his last five starts. Stroman allowed five runs (three earned) and nine hits in 3 1/3 innings of no-decision before New York rallied to win 11-8 in 10 innings at Boston on Saturday.
The right-hander has a 2.61 ERA in four no-decisions against the Blue Jays, for whom he pitched from 2014-19.
The Blue Jays are scheduled to start Kevin Gausman (9-8, 4.44), who is 3-0 with a 3.57 ERA in his last three starts. Gausman last pitched Saturday when he went the distance in a 7-3 win over the Texas Rangers in his second complete game this season and third of his career. He allowed three runs and four hits.
Gausman is 10-9 with a 3.51 ERA in 34 career appearances (28 starts) against the Yankees. He is 0-2 with a 10.97 ERA in three starts against the Yankees this season.
–Field level media
