Ben Rice's clutch ninth-inning homer lifts Yankees to 5-4 win over Blue Jays

Despite bullpen woes and a costly fielding error, a ninth-inning home run from Ben Rice helped the Yankees avoid a late collapse and outlast the Blue Jays, 5-4, on Tuesday night at Rogers Centre.

Here are the takeaways…

— While it took the Yankees four innings to score against Max Scherzer in their June 30 meeting, they only needed four batters to tack on runs in Tuesday's rematch. After a leadoff single from Trent Grisham and a double from Cody Bellinger, the veteran right-hander grooved a full-count, one-out fastball to Jazz Chisholm Jr. that he clobbered into the right-center field seats for a three-run homer. It was the 18th blast of the season for Chisholm, who also happened to break the ice with a dinger off Scherzer three weeks ago.

— Cam Schlittler took the mound for his second-career start — it was delayed a few days due to reported arm soreness — and the Blue Jays put him to work almost immediately. While the rookie's first inning included a pair of strikeouts, he allowed a walk and two singles that brought a run home and cut the Yankees' lead to 3-1. Schlittler then escaped a bases-loaded jam in the second that pushed his pitch total to a whopping 49.

— Scherzer settled in after the first-inning homer, retiring six straight at one point and 13 of 15 with two outs in the fifth. But he just couldn't get the best of Bellinger, who crushed a solo shot to right-center to bump the Yankees' lead to 4-1. Scherzer completed the frame, finishing at a season-high 90 pitches. There was no way to predict a homer and pair of doubles from Bellinger against Scherzer — he entered with a career .118 average across 16 at-bats.

— Schlittler regained control of his pitch count after the second inning, needing only 21 pitches to complete the third and fourth frames. But he fell into trouble in the fifth, allowing three singles that resulted in another Blue Jays run. The rally could've been far worse if not for a slick 6-4-3 double play turned by Anthony Volpe and Chisholm up the middle. It was simply a grind for Schlittler, who gave up two runs on seven hits and three walks with three punchouts (90 pitches).

— Tim Hill took over for Schlittler in the sixth, and the left-hander's rhythm was quickly disrupted by poor support behind him. A throwing error from Volpe on a routine grounder allowed leadoff man Miles Straw to reach base, and from there, a one-out RBI double from pinch-hitter Davis Schneider cut the Blue Jays' deficit back to two. The Yankees then turned to Jonathan Loáisiga to clean up the mess, but he gave up a first-pitch RBI single to George Springer that knotted the score at 4-4. Volpe now has 13 errors this season, tied for the most at any position in MLB.

— Loáisiga surprisingly came back out for the seventh, and the attempt to steal outs with him backfired. He was pulled after one pitch, which Bo Bichette ripped down the left-field line for a double. By necessity, Luke Weaver was tasked with completing the frame, and he did just that by inducing a flyout and two lineouts. One of the outs wasn't pain-free, however — TV cameras caught Aaron Judge flexing his right hand and grimacing after catching a ball and throwing it back in.

— The ninth inning began with the game still tied at 4-4, but it only took five pitches for the Yankees to regain the lead. With one out, Ben Rice played the role of hero, smacking a first-pitch fastball from Jeff Hoffman into the right-center bullpen for a solo homer. Devin Williams handled the bottom half of the frame, and while he flirted with trouble by allowing a leadoff single and a deep flyout, he then struck out a pair to register his 15th save of the season.

Game MVP: Ben Rice

While it was Bellinger who had the best night at the plate, finishing 3-for-4 and boosting his season average to .285, the game wouldn't have been won without Rice's huge solo shot in the ninth. He didn't waste any time in swinging against Hoffman with a chance to do damage.

Highlights

What's next

The Yankees (56-45) will play the rubber game of their series north of the border on Wednesday night, with first pitch scheduled for 7:07 p.m.

LHP Max Fried (11-3, 2.43) is slated to take the mound, opposite RHP Chris Bassitt (10-4, 3.89 ERA).

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