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The Yankees made it close yesterday, but as they say close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades. Just three games behind the division-leading Rays, they don’t need to win every game, but they almost need to win nearly every series to chip away at that deficit. That means today’s rubber game with the Blue Jays is more important than your typical Sunday in August, and with starter Carlos Rodón likely still on a pitch limit, the team needs him to be as efficient as ever. New York Yankees vs. Toronto Blue Jays: Carlos Rodón vs. José Soriano The Yankees look to take the series behind Los’ left arm. Rodón returned earlier this week, a four-inning effort that wasn’t a bad start in and of itself, but saw him get too deep into too many counts. Walks have been his problem all year, and getting into 2-2 or 3-2 counts multiple times an inning doesn’t just make those walks more likely, but when you’re limited to 65 or so pitches, you burn through that allowance quickly. He threw 66 against the Orioles on Tuesday, so we should expect about 75-80 from the southpaw today, and hopefully another inning and a bit than he managed in his return. José Soriano goes for the Jays, one of the pieces that came to the club in their build-but-tactically Trade Deadline. He had 22 strong starts with the Angels, but his three with the Jays have been a little more of a mixed bag. The ERA is great, 2.76, but he’s given up some loud contact and critically has nearly halved his strikeout rate from when he was out west. Three games out of 25 isn’t that much to analyze, but if there are pitches in the zone, the Yankees need to go hunting. The big news on the offensive side is Cody Bellinger is back! The former MVP bats cleanup and perhaps most exciting of all takes over left field from Heliot Ramos. The lineup looks just a little more professionalized today, and hopefully that bears out in just a little more production for a team thirsty for a spark. How to Watch First pitch: 1:35 pm ET TV broadcast: YES, Sportsnet, TVA Sports Radio broadcast: WFAN 660/101.9 FM, WADO 1280 (NYY) | SN590 THE FAN (TOR) Streaming: Gotham Sports App, MLB.tv (out-of-market only) Join the conversation! Sign up for a user account and get: - Fewer ads - Create community posts - Comment on articles, community posts - Rec comments, community posts - New, improved notifications system!