Don’t expect the New York Yankees to be underestimating the Toronto Blue Jays ahead of their first-ever postseason meeting.
Sure, the Blue Jays might’ve come into the year with muted expectations, while the Yankees were fresh off a World Series appearance.
But 162 regular season games (and one Wild Card series for the Yankees) later, and it’s New York who’s heading into Toronto without home field advantage for the American League Division Series starting on Saturday.
And the Yankees’ biggest star, two-time AL MVP Aaron Judge, had kind things to say about the Blue Jays after his Yankees knocked off the Boston Red Sox in a winner-take-all Wild Card Game 3 on Thursday night.
“They’re a complete team. They don’t strike out a lot. So they’re gonna put the ball in play. They’re gonna force your hand on defence. We’re looking forward to that. Toronto is going to be rocking. We love that,” Judge said following the game, per Sportsnet’s David Singh.
Toronto went 6-1 against the Yankees at home at the Rogers Centre this season, while going 3-4 on the road for an overall record of 9-5.
“They had our number in the regular season. and people want to talk about that, but we just got to focus on what we can do and go out there, play our game,” Judge also told YES Network.
Yankees infielder Ryan McMahon also had kind words to say for the Jays.
“Yeah, they’re a good ball club. You know, we know we got our work cut out for us, but we’re excited for the challenge,” McMahon added in an interview with SNY.
When do the Blue Jays and Yankees play?
Game 1: Saturday, Oct. 4 at 4:08 p.m. EDT/1:08 p.m. PDT, at Toronto
Game 2: Sunday, Oct. 5 at 4:08 p.m. EDT/1:08 p.m. PDT, at Toronto
Game 3: Tuesday, Oct. 5, TBD, at New York
Game 4: Wednesday, Oct. 6, TBD, at New York
Game 5; Friday, Oct. 8, TBD, at Toronto
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