Montgomery suffers defeat in Yankee's 4-1 loss to Toronto

BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) - Left-handed pitcher and Sumterite Jordan Montgomery lost for the first time in four starts as the New York Yankees lost to Toronto on Friday.

Hyun Jin Ryu pitched seven shutout innings as the Blue Jays clinched their first postseason spot since 2016, further damaging New York's chances of hosting a first-round series in the American League playoffs.

Montgomery allowed three runs and six hits in 5 1/3 innings as he fell to 2-3 on the season.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. opened the scoring with a solo home run off of Montgomery in the second. The Blue Jays extended their lead when Cavan Biggio and Bo Bichette hit back-to-back, 2-out doubles in the third.

Toronto made it 4-0 in the sixth. Randal Grichuk chased Montgomery with a single and Guerrero singled off Adam Ottavino before rookie Alejandro Kirk hit a 2-out, 2-run double.

The slumping Yankees look likely to play on the road in the postseason, where they've struggled all year.

New York lost for the fourth time in five games following a 10-game winning stretch and remained two games behind the slumping White Sox for the fourth seed. Chicago lost 5-4 at Cleveland, its fifth straight defeat.

"We've got to get it rolling again, obviously, if we're going to get to where we want to go," Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. "I'm confident we can do it.

New York went 21-7 at home this season but was 11-18 on the road. Boone said he's not concerned about that split even as a potential road playoff series looms next week.

Toronto secured at least an AL wild-card spot and ensured its eighth trip overall to the postseason. The Blue Jays had endured three losing campaigns since their previous playoff trip, going 67-95 last season.

The Blue Jays trail the Yankees by two games for second place in the AL East. Both teams have three games remaining. Toronto hosts Baltimore in Buffalo this weekend while the Yankees host the Marlins.