The Lead

Jones Homer Extends Yankees Streak Past Jays

Spencer Jones hit a two-run homer in the second inning that stood up on replay review, and the Yankees beat the Blue Jays 3-1 on Friday for New York's fifth straight win. Toronto's offense managed one run against a Yankees club that is playing its best baseball of the second half at exactly the wrong moment for a Blue Jays team still fighting for position in a crowded AL East.

The more useful story for Toronto sits off the field. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. passed his final concussion tests and is expected to return from the injured list Saturday, which matters more to the next six weeks than one loss in the Bronx.

The Rest of the Slate

Blue Jays Transactions

Toronto reinstated right-hander Spencer Arrighetti from the injured list and recalled Davis Schneider from Triple-A Buffalo on Friday, while Josh Smith went to the 10-day injured list with left hamstring inflammation. The corresponding roster crunch, paired with Guerrero's expected activation, gives the Blue Jays a noticeably different lineup and bullpen than the one that lost Friday night.

The Number

9-1

Montreal Alouettes' win-loss record entering the weekend The Argonauts and Tiger-Cats are both chasing that mark, and tonight's meeting at BMO Field decides who owns sole possession of second place in the East. A loss for either side does more than cost a game in the standings, it hands Montreal a cushion that gets harder to close as the schedule shortens.

What's On Tonight

            1:35 PM ET · Blue Jays at Yankees · Sportsnet
7:00 PM ET · Hamilton Tiger-Cats at Argonauts · TSN4
TBD ET · Toronto FC at Inter Miami · Apple TV+
          

Top Dog — Betting Angle

The pick: Blue Jays moneyline. Guerrero Jr. is expected back in the lineup Saturday, and a healthier heart of the order changes the equation against a Yankees pitching staff that just needed one early homer to beat Toronto's without him.

“One swing decides more games than any lineup card admits”