The Toronto Blue Jays blanked the New York Yankees 6-0 at the Rogers Centre in Toronto on Thursday.
A lot was expected from Ivan Nova but he disappointed Yankee fans and might not be able to find a spot for himself in the team in their potential playoff rotation. Their loss on Thursday, has affected their lead in the AL East.
This is the third loss for the Yankees in five games which has seen their chances of going two games up with six more games remaining.
"We know what's at stake right now and we've just got to go out there and keep picking up wins. We've got a little six-game playoff race," Nick Swisher is quoted as saying by the Associated Press.
The injury ridden Ivan Nova seems to be struggling. His lackluster performance is now a concern for the team. He conceded as many as four runs and six hits in 4 2-3 innings striking out 4 and walking two.
Nova later said: "I'm not pitching the way I want and I'm not getting the result I want, so that's not good."
Nova has failed to win back-to-back outings since a winning streak from May 25 to June 17 this season. He has yielded the most number of extra-base hits, 87 to be precise, which is not a good record for a frontline league pitcher.
"He just hasn't had the command, that's the bottom line," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said.
Nova insisted he's not worried about his future in New York's rotation, but acknowledged his struggles are starting to wear on him. "Especially right now, the position we're in, I'm not feeling good about it. We want to win every day and I'm not doing that," he said.
Brandon Morrow (9-7) looked very aggressive on the field, making it difficult for the Yankees with a variety of off-speed pitches. Morrow's contribution was significant, scattering 4 hits over 7 innings, walking 3 and striking out 3 to see the first win in five starts.
Swisher said: "It didn't seem like he was really raring back tonight. It felt like he was pitching. He was throwing a lot more cutters than I remember, a lot more changeups, breaking balls, things like that, rather than that flat 96 (mph). He did a good job."
Even Russell Martin, the Yankees catcher acknowledged that Morrow played aggressively. "Every time you're in there it feels like you're behind in the count."
Morrow played his longest outing since recuperating from a strained muscle. He had returned from the disabled list on 25 August missing as many as 65 games.
"You always want to try and finish up strong," Morrow said. "It takes a little while to get back into a groove (after an injury) but I've felt good the whole time."
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