Tremendous Toronto

LOS ANGELES (AFP) — The Toronto Blue Jays rode a stunning display from rookie pitcher Trey Yesavage and a Vladimir Guerrero Jr. grand slam to a 13-7 victory that pushed the New York Yankees to the brink of elimination in the Major League Baseball (MLB) playoffs on Sunday.

Daulton Varsho added two home runs as Toronto took a 2-0 lead in the best-of-five American League division series.

Guerrero smashed the first grand slam in Blue Jays playoff history to electrify the crowd at Toronto's Rogers Center.

Fans were treated to five home runs from the hosts, and a record-setting playoff debut from Yesavage.

Making just his fourth MLB start, the 22-year-old held the mighty Yankees lineup without a hit over five and one-third innings, striking out 11 with just one walk.

"When I was out there, I could feel the energy of the crowd," Yesavage said.

"I just knew something was gonna happen. I didn't know it was gonna be all that."

Toronto manager John Schneider said it was "tough to put into words" his thoughts on the performance by Yesavage, who rose through the minor leagues this season.

"The kid started in A-ball this year and just did that against that lineup," Schneider said.

"What we were looking for were command, poise, all that kind of stuff. That was there."

Yesavage broke the previous Blue Jays record for strikeouts in a postseason game of eight and became the second-youngest pitcher with a double-digit strike out game in the playoffs.

"That was nasty stuff," Yankees manager Aaron Boone said of Yesavage's infamous split-finger fastball.

Guerrero's fourth-inning blast to right field was followed by Varsho's 407-foot, two-run homer to right center that pushed Toronto's lead to 11-0.

The Jays had hammered Yankees starting pitcher Max Fried through three innings, piling up eight hits on the way to a 5-0 lead.

That included a two-run homer in the second inning by Ernie Clement, who also singled in a run in the third. George Springer added a solo homer in the fifth that made it 12-0.

Aaron Judge got New York's first hit of the game with a single off reliever Justin Bruihl and Cody Bellinger followed with a home run that finally put the Yankees on the board in the top of the sixth.

Varsho answered with his second homer in the bottom of the frame.

The Yankees clawed out five runs in the seventh but that was the end of the fightback.

The Yankees, who like the Blue Jays won 94 games this season but were edged out for the AL East division title on the tiebreaker, will now be fighting to stay alive when they host Game 3 on Tuesday.

"I know we'll show up and ready to go expecting to win," Boone said.

"There's been a lot of weird things that have happened in baseball this year. This would not be the weirdest, us rallying."

The winner of the series will face either the Seattle Mariners or Detroit Tigers in the American League Championship Series.

The Mariners were aiming to bounce back on Sunday after the Tigers won a nailbiting game one 3-2 in the 11th inning.