The Yankees (100-54, 9.5 GA in AL East) start a three-game series with the Blue Jays (62-91, 37.5 GB in AL East) at Yankee Stadium on Friday night, with first pitch set for 7:05 p.m.
Yankees notes
The Yankees clinched the AL East after their 9-1 victory over the Angels on Thursday night at Yankee Stadium. The victory gave them back-to-back 100-win seasons and made manager Aaron Boone the first in MLB history to do such in his first two seasons. It's also the team's first divison title since 2012. Masahiro Tanaka had a strong outing, as he allowed just one earned run and four hits over 7.0 innings of work. The Yanks hit four home runs in the win, courtesy of DJ LeMahieu, Brett Gardner, Cameron Maybin, and Clint Frazier.
| Blue Jays | Yankees |
|---|---|
| Anthony Alford, LF | DJ LeMahieu, 2B |
| Cavan Biggio, 2B | Aaron Judge, DH |
| Lourdes Gurriel Jr., DH | Didi Gregorius, SS |
| Vladimir Guerrero Jr., 3B | Gleyber Torres, 2B |
| Randal Grichuk, RF | Luke Voit, 1B |
| Teoscar Hernandez, CF | Brett Gardner, CF |
| Justin Smoak, 1B | Clint Frazier, RF |
| Danny Jansen, C | Austin Romine, C |
| Richard Urena, SS | Tyler Wade, LF |
Who is starting for the Yankees?
LHP J.A. Happ (12-8, 5.07 ERA) was recently cleared to pitch after dealing with left bicep tenditis. He allowed two earned runs on seven hits in 4.2 innings during his last start on Sept. 12 vs. the Detroit Tigers... he's gone 2-1 with a 3.46 ERA in his last five starts.
Who is starting for the Blue Jays?
RHP Jacob Waguespack (4-5, 4.70 ERA) has struggled lately, going 1-4 with a 5.52 ERA in his last seven games. The righty hasn't been throwing much, lasting just 15.0 innings in his last four starts -- all of which have been losses. He also hasn't struck out more than four batters in a game since Aug. 22 against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Upcoming schedule
The Yankees continue their series with the Blue Jays on Saturday at 1:05 p.m. at Yankee Stadium. RHP T.J. Zeuch (1-0, 4.61 ERA) is scheduled to start for the Blue Jays, while the Yankees have yet to announce a starting pitcher.