Aaron Judge hits walk-off, three-run HR as Yankees top Blue Jays

When Yimi Garcia hit Josh Donaldson in the sixth inning of Tuesday’s game, the Yankees were ready in the dugout — Aaron Judge, quickly slinging his leg over the railing, Miguel Castro looking like a cat prepared to pounce.

There didn’t end up being a brawl, though the Blue Jays were served with three ejections before the night was over, but the game proved that the slow simmer surrounding these American League East rivals is quickly starting to boil, with the promise of a lot more as the stakes get higher and the season matures. And just like that sixth inning, Judge is — and will be — ready.

With one out and two on in the ninth inning, Judge hit a monster, walk-off home run off Jordan Romano, a no-doubter to the second deck in left, as the Yankees came from behind to defeat the Blue Jays 6-5. It was his second career walk-off hit, and the Yankees’ fourth walk-off victory this year, most in the majors.

Romano walked Jose Trevino and DJ LeMahieu to bring up Judge, serving up a 1-and-2, chest-high slider tailor made for magic. The two teams have played eight of their 19 games this season, with the Yankees going 5-3, helping set up a rivalry that seems destined for postseason implications.

“I think when Josh got hit, I think that locked all of us in,” Judge said. “Like, OK, it’s go time. Especially me. That was the thing that kind of got me going a little bit. This is a team, we’re fighting for each other. It doesn’t matter what the situation is. We’re always going to pick each other up.”

With the score tied at 3, Jonathan Loaisiga walked Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to lead off the eighth and, one batter later, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. roped Chad Green’s high fastball to the wall in left for a double, chasing a chugging Guerrero, who slid into home plate and putting the Blue Jays up 4-3. Gurriel moved to third on the throw and scored on Alejandro Kirk’s sacrifice fly.

The Blue Jays scored the first three runs against Luis Severino. George Springer hit a leadoff homer, unloading on a hanging cutter and barreling it 383 feet to left. In the second, Severino put two on for the No, 8 hitter, Santiago Espinal, who drilled an inside fastball to left for what was originally ruled a three-run homer. A review, showed the ball hit off Aaron Hicks’ glove and ricocheted off the wall, making it a two-run double.

Severino got the next two outs, but walked Bo Bichette to bring up Guerrero, causing Aaron Boone to make his way toward the mound; Severino vehemently waved off his manager, who then sent pitching coach Matt Blake to talk to him instead. The decision ended up being a good one: The righthander retired the next 10 before Guerrero’s fifth-inning single ended his night. He pitched 4 2⁄3, allowing three runs and five hits with two walks and eight strikeouts.

“I was fine with it because I wasn’t going to take him out, necessarily,” Boone said. “So, when he pushed me away hard like that, I was like, ‘Yes, sir. Let’s go.’”

The Yankees offense, which had scored only six runs in the previous four games, were no-hit by Yusei Kikuchi for the first five innings before tying the game in the sixth.

That’s when the Yankees got two on against the lefthander, and Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo brought in Garcia to face Giancarlo Stanton, who went the other way on an 88.1-mph slider, hitting it 335-feet to right for a Yankee Stadium special, a three-run homer that just cleared the wall to tie the score at 3. Garcia then hit the next batter, Donaldson, and was ejected without a warning. Pitching coach Pete Walker got tossed, too, after arguing.

Stanton and Judge have homered in 20 games together, and the Yankees have won in 19 of them.

There was more drama in the seventh, when Montoyo got ejected after Loaisiga threw inside to Bichette.

Boone and Donaldson didn’t seem to believe Garcia’s pitch was intentional. Crew chief Alfonso Marquez told a pool reporter that Garcia was partially thrown out because catcher Tyler Heineman had already exchanged heated words with Donaldson earlier in the game.

“It’s a heavyweight game in May,” Boone said, a testament to the growing rivalry. “I’d say that if we lost coming in here. Those are fun to be a part of. What a great rally against a really good closer.

By Laura Albanese

laura.albanese@newsday.com@AlbaneseLaura

Laura Albanese is the Mets beat writer for Newsday. She's been covering MLB since 2014 after starting at Newsday as an intern seven years earlier.