NEW YORK – Whatever Alek Manoah and Gerrit Cole really think about each other, regardless of the Audi sign in foul territory at Yankee Stadium or anything Manoah said on Serge Ibaka’s cooking show last winter, what counts the most is what happens between the lines.
That doesn’t mean Manoah’s comments are meaningless. The Yankees, obviously, are aware that he invited Cole to walk past the painted-on Audi sign last summer then called him MLB’s biggest cheater a few months later. But it’s results that count most in the end, not verbal jabs.
On a cool afternoon in the Bronx Saturday, both pitched near the peak of their abilities. Cole held the Blue Jays scoreless for 5.2 innings. Manoah kept the Yankees off the board for seven. But after a drama-free afternoon from the starters, Anthony Volpe and Danny Jansen exchanged late-game two-run home runs to set up a DL LeMahieu walk-off single against closer Jordan Romano as the Yankees took a 3-2 win.
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From a distance the Cole-Manoah matchup seemed primed for tension – especially after Yankees reliever Greg Weissert hit Vladimir Guerrero Jr. with a fastball late in Friday’s game. Yet as first pitch approached Saturday, both managers seemed to be reading from the same playbook when asked about the possibility of bad blood.
“No,” said Yankees manager Aaron Boone. “It’s two good teams going at it.”
“Not at all,” echoed John Schneider said. “It’s just two good teams that play hard against one another.”
As it turns out, the managers were right. Cole was effective limiting the visitors to just two walks and four hits. His fastball touched 99 m.p.h. on his way to four strikeouts, and at one point he retired nine consecutive Blue Jays.
While he did hit one batter, no one appeared to believe it was intentional. With two outs and one on in the top of the second inning, Cole hit Santiago Espinal in the right wrist with a 98 m.p.h. fastball, forcing the second baseman from the game. The team’s describing the injury as a contusion, with further tests to come.
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But there was no retaliation from the Blue Jays, who fall to 12-9 with the loss. In fact, Manoah seemed to have far better command than he has for much of the season with only one walk and two hits allowed. Wearing short sleeves and high socks, he was around the strike zone consistently, striking out five and needing only 85 pitches to work through seven innings.
Defensively, it was a tough game for Alejandro Kirk, who dropped a pop-up for an error while the Yankees stole a pair of bases. Thankfully for the Blue Jays, though, Manoah escaped the second inning unscathed despite the missed play.
Even if it was soon overshadowed, Jansen’s home run was a significant development for the Blue Jays. The catcher started slowly at the plate but – like Brandon Belt, who hit his first homer Friday – has been swinging better of late.
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Aside from Jansen’s home run, the Blue Jays were quiet at the plate, combining for just seven hits as a team. Without much offence, they were unable to take full advantage of Manoah’s strong start. Maybe he out-duelled Cole, but as the final score reflects, the Yankees outplayed the Blue Jays as a collective.