Yanks hope to ride homer rampage to sweep of Jays

The New York Yankees own the major league record after hitting a homer for the 28th consecutive game Tuesday.

Now they want to keep it going -- especially if it leads to another win.

The Yankees get a chance to extend their long-ball streak Wednesday afternoon at Yankee Stadium when they go for the three-game sweep of the Toronto Blue Jays.

New York broke the homer-streak record set by the 2002 Texas Rangers when it hit four solo homers Tuesday in a 4-3 win. DJ LeMahieu and Aaron Judge opened the game by homering, and Gleyber Torres and Edwin Encarnacion also connected.

"It's a tribute to having a lot of really good hitters and having a lot of guys that can hit for power, and I think now we're seeing as we get more whole that I think they kind of protect each other," Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. "When you look at our lineup, it's really tough for the opponent to have to navigate through, and I think they all benefit from each guy being a really good hitter and making the pitcher work really hard."

The Yankees are 10-1 in their past 11 games and 17-11 during the homer streak, in which 14 players have combined for 51 homers. That list includes Giancarlo Stanton, who homered Monday but exited the Tuesday game due to a right knee contusion. He might not play Wednesday.

Toronto is 2-8 in its past 10 games in the Bronx and 5-13 in the past 18 meetings with the Yankees. The Blue Jays are hoping to avoid a sweep after seeing two late comeback bids fall short when Freddy Galvis made the last out during lengthy at-bats against Aroldis Chapman each night.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Randal Grichuk hit RBI singles for Toronto on Tuesday in a game where the Blue Jays were 2-for-10 with runners in scoring position and struck out 12 times.

"We're just playing good baseball," Toronto manager Charlie Montoyo said. "We're in every game, good pitching, we're swinging the bats, we're playing good defense. That's what I mean by progress. We're playing good baseball."

New York left-hander James Paxton (5-3, 3.75 ERA) will attempt to win his third straight start on Wednesday. In victories over the Chicago White Sox and Houston Astros, Paxton has allowed three runs on 13 hits with 14 strikeouts in 11 innings.

Before the past two outings, Paxton was 0-1 with a 7.15 ERA in his previous three starts following an injured-list stint caused by left knee inflammation.

Paxton faced the Blue Jays three weeks ago in Toronto, and he allowed four runs (three earned) in 4 2/3 innings, taking a no-decision in an 11-7 loss. The 30-year-old Canadian is 3-3 with a 4.69 ERA in seven career starts against the Blue Jays, and he threw a no-hitter in Toronto on May 8, 2018.

Rookie Trent Thornton (2-5, 4.25 ERA) will make his 17th career start for Toronto. He is 1-1 with a 3.52 ERA in his past four starts.

Thornton last pitched Friday, taking a no-decision in Boston when he allowed two runs on eight hits in 6 1/3 innings during Toronto's 7-5, 10-inning loss.

Thornton opposed Paxton three weeks ago, his first career appearance against the Yankees. He allowed four runs on five hits in five innings, and he wasn't involved in the decision.

--Field Level Media