NEW YORK _ Sunday started with the Yankees honoring CC Sabathia before their final regular-season home game. Sabathia, once the team's ace, is expected to be a bit player in the upcoming postseason. If he pitches at all, it will be out of the bullpen.
Of much more importance to the Yankees' immediate future was Luis Severino's second outing of the season. Severino, the team's most recent ace, has been a bit player this season.
But that could all change in October.
Severino was brilliant in the Yankees' 8-3 victory over the Blue Jays. In five shutout innings, he allowed three singles, hit a batter, and struck out nine. He threw 80 pitches, 54 for strikes.
Severino (1-0) made his 2019 debut on Tuesday with four shutout innings against the Angels. Unrelated shoulder and lat injuries kept him out for more than five months. He will have one more start before the Yankees postseason begins on Oct. 4.
Brett Gardner hit a three-run homer in the first off former Met Wilmer Font (2-3). Aaron Judge and DJ LeMahieu had solo shots as the Yankees led 6-0 after two innings.
Judge hit his 26th into the ambulance bay in left-center for the game's first run. After two walks, Gardner hit his 27th into the rightfield seats to give the Yankees a 4-0 lead.
In the second, LeMahieu hit his 26th home run, a two-run shot off reliever Trent Thornton, to make it 6-0. Giancarlo Stanton had a sacrifice fly and Luke Voit added an RBI single in the fifth to expand the lead to 8-0.
The Yankees have hit an MLB-record 298 home runs with five games to play. They have hit 33 in their last 14 games.
Former Yankee Billy McKinney hit a two-run homer off Tyler Lyons in the seventh and a solo shot off Nestor Cortes Jr. in the ninth for the Blue Jays' runs.
Sabathia was honored with a moving on-field ceremony that included a lengthy video tribute from his current and former teammates and current and former foes and another video tribute from his family. The Yankees presented Sabathia with platitudes, a painting and a 10-day family trip to Japan before he threw out the ceremonial first pitch to his mother.
"This is an honor," Sabathia told the appreciative crowd of 44,583 after wiping away tears. "This is unbelievable."
The Sabathia ceremony delayed the start of the game by 30 minutes.
