'Fired up' Yankees set for home opener vs. Blue Jays

The last time the New York Yankees were seen at Yankee Stadium, they were playing a makeup game in front of a smattering of fans the day after being eliminated from playoff contention for the first time since 2016.

So far, the attempt to forget about the disappointment of last season is off to a good start. The Yankees will try to maintain their early roll on Friday afternoon when they play their home opener against the Toronto Blue Jays.

"The guys are fired up and rightfully so," Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. "I'm sure the Bronx will be popping on Friday."

The Yankees are making their first appearance in the Bronx since Sept. 25 when they concluded their home schedule of a disappointing 82-80 finish last season. After the season ended with a 5-2 loss in Kansas City on Oct. 1, Aaron Judge said some changes needed to be made and by December, the Yankees added Juan Soto and Alex Verdugo in trades to help provide some more left-handed hitting.

Soto and Verdugo helped the Yankees start the new season with six wins in seven games, marking their best start since also going 6-1 in the pandemic 2020 season.

Soto went 10-for-29 on the trip through Houston and Arizona, highlighting his first week as a Yankee by getting a go-ahead single Sunday in Houston. Verdugo was 4-for-25 but helped New York rebound from its first loss by hitting a two-run homer in the 10th inning of a 6-5 win against the Diamondbacks on Wednesday.

Judge hit a two-run homer and produced the go-ahead RBI double in the 11th after the Yankees allowed Arizona to extend the game.

"It's pretty nice," Soto said. "I won't say it makes it easier, but we have the record on our side. With a huge start, it's great for confidence as we go up to New York."

Toronto was among the teams to beat out the Yankees by winning 89 games, however it fizzled in the wild-card series when it scored one run in a two-game sweep at Minnesota.

So far, the Blue Jays are off to a rough start at the plate by hitting .176 in their first seven games, including Monday when they were no-hit at Houston. The Blue Jays scored eight of their 22 runs in the season opener at Tampa Bay, and Daulton Varsho got their only hit in Wednesday's 8-0 loss.

The only hitter off to a quick start is newcomer Justin Turner, who is 7-for-22. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is 5-for-24, Bo Bichette is 3-for-20 and George Springer is 3-for-25.

"We have a really talented group," Toronto manager John Schneider said. "We have all the confidence in the world they're going to hit. It's a tough series. You don't want to make any knee-jerk reactions. These guys are professionals, and they're going to be ready on Friday."

The Yankees will attempt to keep Toronto's offense quiet by starting former Blue Jays right-hander Marcus Stroman (1-0, 0.00 ERA). He made his Yankee debut Saturday and allowed three unearned runs on four hits in six innings of a 5-3 win at Houston.

Stroman is making his second start against the Blue Jays since they traded him to the New York Mets in 2019. He faced them on Aug. 30, 2022 for the Chicago Cubs and allowed one run in five innings of a no-decision.

Left-hander Yusei Kikuchi (0-1, 6.23), who allowed three runs in 4 1/3 innings Saturday against the Rays, starts for Toronto. He is 4-3 with a 3.57 ERA in 12 career appearances (10 starts) against the Yankees.