Stro's 'raw emotion' may be catalyst Yankees needed

TORONTO -- Marcus Stroman fumed as he watched Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hustle down the first-base line in the fifth inning on Friday night, legging out a potential double play. The Yankees’ pitcher cursed into his glove, then appeared to shout: “Throw the … ball,” before spiking the rosin bag at the back of the mound.

The target of Stroman’s ire was second baseman Gleyber Torres, with the pitcher believing that his teammate could have made a quicker throw after receiving a feed from shortstop Anthony Volpe. Stroman’s tirade continued while he paced the dugout after a pitching change, ultimately prompting a cooling-off chat with captain Aaron Judge.

Evidence of bad vibes in the clubhouse? Hardly. The display helped to ignite and unite the Yankees, as Juan Soto crushed a go-ahead three-run homer and Torres also went deep in a 16-5 victory over the Blue Jays at Rogers Centre. The 16 runs marked a season high for the Yankees, who snapped a four-game losing streak.

“This game can definitely have a lot of raw emotion come out,” Stroman said. “I'm very passionate. I care a lot about winning for this team and for the city. Sometimes, raw emotion comes out. I checked in with everybody I needed to check in with after the game. It's all directed toward winning and being great out there, and sometimes it's frustrating.”

When Stroman was lifted with one out in the fifth, he shouted while stomping through the dugout, demanding more intensity from his teammates.

“We’ve just been a little passive and in a little bit of a lull this last week, two weeks,” Stroman said later.

Whether by coincidence or response, results followed. Jahmai Jones led off the sixth with a single, Volpe dropped a bunt for a hit and Soto worked the count to 3-0 against Yusei Kikuchi before teeing off on a fastball down the middle for his 20th homer of the season.

“We always need a win,” Soto said. “Every time we win a game is really important for us. It’s been a little frustrating for us, but it is what it is. We just forget about what happened in the past. We came out to play today, and we did our job.”

Soto’s blast provided the Yanks with their first lead of the series, rebounding after a ninth consecutive game in which the Bombers saw their opponent score first. Manager Aaron Boone spoke with Stroman, saying he has “no issues with where Stro’s mind, heart and focus is.”

“We’re good,” Boone said. “Those guys are pros and focused, and we know what we’re playing for. Every now and then, it can get a little messy. Sometimes … you fight for it, and you compete for it. Sometimes, it’s not always perfect between guys, and that’s OK.”

The Yankees weren’t done. J.D. Davis belted a run-scoring double for his first hit as a Yankee before Torres launched his eighth home run of the season, a two-run blast off Nate Pearson.

Torres was benched for two games this week after committing an error and not running out a ground ball in Tuesday’s Subway Series loss to the Mets at Citi Field, prompting Boone to say that he sensed Torres needed a mental and physical “reset.”

Torres beamed broadly as he rounded the bases, and Stroman emerged as one of the first players out of the dugout, greeting his teammate with a handshake and hug. Judge also congratulated Torres in a warm exchange, and Torres said that he and Stroman are fine.

“I really understand,” Torres said. “I don’t have any issues with that. I know how hard [the game is], so I think it’s part of the game when you’ve got that type of relationship with your teammates.”

Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Guerrero hit late homers off the Bombers’ bullpen, but the Yanks responded with run-scoring doubles from Alex Verdugo and DJ LeMahieu (the latter’s first extra-base hit of the season) in the eighth inning.

The Yankees piled on in a seven-run ninth, with each player in the starting lineup collecting at least one hit. Having been the Majors’ first club to 50 victories two weeks ago at Boston’s Fenway Park, New York won for just the third time in a dozen games.

“You can't hold this team down for long,” Stroman said. “I feel like it was something that was going to happen soon. We've just been in a little bit of a lull lately. It was good to see the boys swinging it again.”