Game 280 - New York Yankees at Toronto Bluejays

September 22 at Rogers Centre in Toronto, Canada
Sportsnet

I don't ever ride on roller coasters because it's silly to do so and don't ever use the term "real roller coaster ride". BUT, if I'm ever going to use the term, tonight's game might as well be my first.

Sorry, just give me a second here. I'm a little nervous.

OK.

Tonight's game was a real roller coaster ride!

The Yankees pulled out a 6-4 win in 10 innings to keep their AL East Division hopes alive (the win got them within 2 1/2 with 12 to play, including one more with first-place Toronto on Wednesday) despite the fact that:

* The Yankees had two runners thrown out on the bases by Jose Bautista. First, Dustin Ackley at third in the seventh (following a safe call which was overturned by a challenge), then Chris Young at home in the ninth.

Ackley tried to go first-to-third and was thrown out by a step on a nice throw & catch/tag by Josh Donaldson. What was New York's strategy in the ninth? Not entirely sure, but this was written on a piece of paper that fell out of third base coach Joe Espada's ear:

To: Joe
In reference to: Late inning strategy

That guy in right field with the cannon for an arm? He threw on the fly to get one of our runners two innings ago. We get a guy at third this time, if the same right fielder catches a medium-depth fly ball? SEND HIM HOME!

The second-worst thing you can see during a baseball game is Jose Bautista satisfied with himself. (Worst: David Ortiz taking 3 1/2 days to round the bases on a home run).

* Down 3-2 in the bottom of the 8th (Carlos Beltran had hit his second go-ahead home run in the eighth or later in Toronto this season a half-inning before), Toronto loaded the bases and had one of its best hitters (Edwin Encarnacion) at the plate.

* Toronto tied the game at 3-3 on a Dioner Navarro solo home run in the bottom of the ninth, THEN loaded the bases again with the best hitter in the American League (Donaldson) at the plate.

* Honestly, the Bluejays are a better team.

Yet: Dellin Betances struck out Encarnacion, Andrew Miller shook off the ridiculous Navarro home run to strike out Donaldson when he had nowhere to put him, and Greg Bird delivered a gigantic, three-run home run in the top of the tenth for the winning runs.

The rookie Bird has been incredible - six of his 10 home runs have given New York the lead - and also, the 10th-inning rally started with a Brian McCann bunt single against the shift and Slade Heathcott reaching on a catcher's interference. Again: ridiculous evening of baseball.

Sometimes the better team loses, and though it looked on several occasions like they wouldn't on Tuesday, the wild card-leading Yankees found a way.

I'll be spending the rest of the night/early morning changing out an old cool rag for my forehead for a new one every 20 minutes while listening to the whale sounds CD.