Schmidt, offense struggle as Yankees drop opener

NEW YORK — The schedule-makers likely envisioned Yankee Stadium as the setting for a taut September showdown rife with pennant race implications. The Yankees’ sluggish summer largely relegated them to spoiler status, an assignment manager Aaron Boone seemed to reluctantly accept as the club opened its final homestand of the regular season.

“We’ll look up at the end and see how it all shakes out,” Boone said before the Bombers’ 7-1 loss to the Blue Jays on Tuesday evening. “Spoiler? I guess, sure. We want to go out and win, so if that means spoiling, so be it.”

Then George Springer hit Clarke Schmidt’s fifth pitch over the right-field wall for a leadoff homer, and the Yanks never led in the contest. With the Blue Jays continuing to hunt an American League Wild Card spot, Bo Bichette later added a two-run homer off Schmidt, who permitted four runs and four hits in five innings.

Gleyber Torres doubled home Aaron Judge in the first inning to account for the Yankees’ only run off Toronto starter Yusei Kikuchi, who worked five-plus innings before exiting with a cramp in his left upper trapezius muscle. The Yanks have lost just seven of their last 21 games since the start of play on Aug. 28.