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NEW YORK -- Derek Jeters farewell tour. Family and friends in the stands. On the fringes of a playoff race. Marcus Stroman was making dream start, and it sure had a happy ending. Stroman pitched six gritty innings, Jose Bautista hit his eighth homer of the year against New York and the Toronto Blue Jays ended a season-worst six-game skid to beat the Yankees 6-3 Saturday and keep their faint playoff hopes alive. "It was an awesome environment," said the rookie right-hander who is from nearby Medford. "It was special, being from here, watching Jeter growing up. I definitely rank it pretty high." With eight games to play for both teams, Toronto is 5 1/2 games back for an AL wild card and the Yankees are 4 1/2. Seattle and Cleveland all played later Saturday night. Danny Valencia hit a go-ahead, two-run double in the sixth, helping hand the Yankees their first loss of Jeters final homestand after two wins over Toronto. New York had won three in a row overall. With most of the 47,292 fans at Yankee Stadium standing and chanting "Der-ek Je-ter!" his every at-bat, the retiring captain doubled and singled for his third straight multihit game. He also scored his 1,920th run to pass suspended teammate Alex Rodriguez for ninth place on the career list. Jeter hit an RBI double down the left-field line off Brandon Morrow in the ninth to cut the lead to 6-3 as cameras flashed throughout the packed ballpark. Casey Janssen relieved and hit Brian McCann with a pitch before getting two outs for his 24th save. "The guy never stops fighting and believing in himself," manager Joe Girardi said of Jeter. "Its an attitude thats infectuous and its an attitude that you want in your players." Awaiting word on his appeal of a six-game suspension for throwing over the head of Orioles catcher Caleb Joseph on Monday, Stroman (11-6) gave up two runs and eight hits. He struck out seven without allowing a walk. Bautista scored four times and reached base all five plate appearances, walking three times to pass 100 for the third time in his career. The All-Star right-fielder connected leading off the seventh against Chase Whitley, giving him 34 homers and 101 RBIs this year. His eight homers against New York are tied for most against one team this season, according to STATS. The Cubs Anthony Rizzo has eight against Cincinnati. "I think its a good performance that obviously helps in meaningful games in September," Bautista said, reflecting on his day. "Its going to be tough, but mathematically were still in it." Edwin Encarnacion had an RBI double in the first off Chris Capuano (2-4) but the Yankees took a lead with runs in the third and fourth. Jeter singled off the glove of diving second baseman Steve Tolleson and scored on McCanns single after advancing on a wild pitch in the third. FAKE OUT Yankees fans booed Bautista as he left the field at the end of the seventh inning after he caught the last out in right field, turned and faked tossing the ball into the bleachers. Bautista had a ball in his back pocket upon his return for the bottom of the eighth and flipped it into the crowd. A fan feigned giving it to a woman in a Blue Jays jersey and threw it right back onto the field. "At first I thought it was some innocent back and forth," he said. "But after the ball was thrown I decided not to continue to have the interaction because, what was going to happen next?" TRAINERS ROOM Blue Jays: 1B Adam Lind was out of the lineup because his "back locked up a little bit (Friday)," according to manager John Gibbons. Gibbons hopes the injury does not sideline Lind too long. Yankees: 1B Mark Teixeira was pinch hit for in the fifth inning. He left with a sore right wrist and will consult with the surgeon who operated on the wrist last year. ... CF Jacoby Ellsbury was out of the lineup a day after straining his right hamstring. UP NEXT Blue Jays: RHP Drew Hutchinson (10-12) takes the mound in the finale of the season series between the teams. Yankees: Masahiro Tanaka (12-4) is scheduled to make his first start since July 8. Hes has been out with a partial tear of an elbow ligament and is trying to avoid Tommy John surgery. LEANING LEFT The Blue Jays started a lineup against Capuano with two switch-hitters, Dioner Navarro and Dalton Pompey, and seven righties. That left Toronto with a bench of eight left-handed bats. Fake Yeezy Danmark . Assistant coach Glen Gulutzan said Thursday that Edler, who played Tuesday in Nashville, is out indefinitely. Køb Fake Yeezy . Henderson (20-3) received winning scores of 48-47 and 49-46, and the other judge scored it 48-47 for Thomson (20-6). The announcement drew boos from the United Center crowd. "Train this hard for this long, its such a long camp and I see my title shot disappear," said Thomson, who fought most of the fight with a broken right hand. http://www.yeezyskodanmark.com/ . It certainly isnt a coincidence that Dwight Howard has scored at least 20 points in each game of the winning streak. Yeezy Boost Køb . Smith, an eighth overall pick, had two goals in only 276 minutes of playing time over 16 appearances last season. The left side midfielder played only 43 minutes in three games this season. Yeezy Sko Fake . "It feels good, Ive never had one before, not even in College," Hagelin said after the Rangers outgunned the Jets 4-2, behind some solid goaltending from Henrik Lundqvist following a pretty wide open first period.LANSING, Mich. - In a story Dec. 16 about the Eisenhower Center, The Associated Press, based on information from the centre, reported erroneously that it will be the primary facility used by the NFL Players Association for treating brain injuries and other neurological issues through the After the Impact program. According to the NFLPA, the centre is one of the facilities the group uses to treat a number of health-related issues.A corrected version of the story is below:Brain-injury program working with NFL playersMichigan centre updates military veteran brain-injury program to include football playersLANSING, Michigan (AP) — A brain-injury treatment program originally designed for military veterans injured on the battlefield has been updated to include professional athletes.Representatives with the Eisenhower Center say it is the only facility in the country that pairs NFL former players with military veterans as they undergo treatment for a number of health related issues.The residential neuro-rehabilitation facility is based in Ann Arbor.The program provides intense treatment for soldiers and athletes recovering from concussions, mild traumatic brain injury, post-traumatic stress disorder and other problems. IIt evolved from the Eisenhower Centers transitional treatment program to help military members deal with brain injuries.ddddddddddddThe NFL expects 6,000 of nearly 20,000 retired players — or 28 per cent — to suffer from Alzheimers disease or at least moderate dementia someday. Former players have sued.Current Detroit Lions tight end Joseph Fauria and former quarterback Eric Hipple attended Tuesdays announcement.Nearly one-third of all retired NFL players will suffer from a long-term cognitive problem, Hipple said. The players and veterans who have gone through the After the Impact program have learned a lot from each other and helped each other on the path to recovery.The NFL last month urged a judge to approve an estimated $1 billion settlement of concussion lawsuits despite concerns raised by former players or survivors who felt left out. The 65-year fund would resolve thousands of lawsuits that accuse the NFL of long hiding what it knew about concussions and brain injuries to keep players on the field.The issue is a significant one in hockey too. In October, a consolidated class-action lawsuit by former NHL players against the league over concussion-related injuries was filed in federal court. ' ' '