Wallace Matthews, ESPN Staff Writer 10y

Rapid Reaction: Yankees 5, Blue Jays 2

NEW YORK -- A good day for the Yankees' future, but not so good for the present. Masahiro Tanaka pitched effectively and more important, apparently pain-free, for 5 1/3 innings, and the Yankees hit well -- home runs from Brian McCann (2) and Brett Gardner, and two more hits from Derek Jeter -- to beat the Blue Jays 5-2 and take three of four.

But Kansas City was leading the Tigers as this game ended, and if they hold on, it means the Yankees' elimination number is down to four with seven games to play. If not, it holds at five. Either way, still not a great chance of seeing baseball in the Bronx this October.

But a decent chance of seeing a healthy Tanaka next season, and that is something to look forward to, isn't it?

Hiro-ic return: Tanaka's first start in nearly three months went as well as the Yankees could have hoped, assuming he comes out of it healthy, something we probably won't know until Monday morning. Tanaka went 5 1/3 innings, allowed five hits and one run, and showed both velocity on his fastball (92 mph) and good downward action on his splitter. The Jays started off well, with singles by Jose Reyes and Jose Bautista to start the game, and scored a run when Edwin Encarnacion hit into a double play, but Tanaka took control after that. When he left the game, the Yankees led 2-1, putting him in position to win his 13th game of the season and first since July 3. Tanaka got a standing ovation from the Yankees crowd as he left the mound, and in an uncharacteristic display, gave a semi cap-tip to the crowd on his way to the dugout.

On fire: Before the game, Joe Girardi said Jeter was likely to play in all of the Yankees' remaining eight games, and the Captain justified that with two more hits, including an RBI double roped into the left-field corner in the seventh that made it a 3-1 game. In the four games against Toronto, Jeter went 8-for-17 (.471) with two doubles, a HR and three RBIs. He even stole third, without a throw, in the seventh inning, just after the crowd had erupted with chants of "Thank you, Derek!"

Big Mac Attack: McCann leapfrogged Mark Teixeira for the team lead in home runs (22) with a pair in today's game: a solo shot in the first that tied the game at 1, and a two-run shot in the seventh that busted it open from 3-1 to 5-1.

Gardy party: Gardner's 17th homer of the season, and first since Aug. 30, gave the Yankees a 2-1 lead in the fifth. Gardy belted a 3-2, 94 mph fastball from Drew Hutchison just inside the right-field foul pole leading off the inning. It was only his third hit in 15 at-bats on this homestand. Gardner added to his day with a double into the right-field corner leading off the seventh and scored on Jeter's double to left to make it 3-1.

For what it's worth, Gardner's home run was also homer No. 15,000 in Yankees history.

Arrest Warren: A rejuvenated Adam Warren stopped the Jays in their tracks coming in to relieve Tanaka with two on and one out in the sixth. Warren struck out Dioner Navarro and Dan Johnson to end the inning, and then followed with a 1-2-3 seventh.

Questionable stop: In the second inning, third base coach Rob Thomson put up a late stop sign for Francisco Cervelli after Ichiro doubled to right, causing Cervelli to put the brakes on in a hurry, and nearly causing two Yankees to be standing on third base. In a tie game with the weak-hitting Brendan Ryan coming up, it might have been wiser to send him, but Thomson might be a little gun-shy after his controversial send of Stephen Drew last week led to a crucial out in a 4-3 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays.

Tomorrow: To close out the final homestand of the season, the Yankees play four games against the AL East champion Baltimore Orioles, starting with a matchup of Michael Pineda (3-2, 2.15) and LHP Wei-Yin Chen (16-4, 3.58) on Monday at 7:05 p.m.

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