TORONTO (Interstat) — Paul Goldschmidt’s two-run homer in the ninth inning lifted the New York Yankees to a 3-1 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays on Saturday afternoon at Rogers Centre before 42,364 fans.

The game took 2 hours, 37 minutes and was a taut pitchers’ duel through seven innings, as Toronto starter Kevin Gausman matched zeros with New York’s Cam Schlittler until each team broke through with a solo home run.

Gausman, who entered with a 3.12 ERA, was nearly untouchable. He allowed one hit and one earned run over seven innings, striking out seven and walking none. The only hit off him was a leadoff homer in the fourth inning by Jasson Dominguez, which tied the game at 1-1.

Toronto had taken the lead in the third inning when Kazuma Okamoto crushed a line-drive homer to left field, his 15th of the season, off Schlittler. Schlittler worked 5 2/3 innings, giving up one run on four hits, striking out four and walking four.

The Blue Jays had opportunities to add to their lead but were repeatedly thwarted by New York’s defense and timely pitching. In the fourth inning, Toronto put runners at second and third with one out after Yohendrick Pinango doubled, but Schlittler struck out Andres Gimenez and got Charles McAdoo to line out.

In the fifth, Toronto loaded the bases with a walk and a hit batter before Schlittler induced a double play from Okamoto. The inning ended with Jesus Sanchez striking out on a foul tip.

The Yankees could not solve Gausman. After Dominguez’s homer, Gausman retired the next 12 batters he faced, retiring the side in order in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings. New York managed only three baserunners total through seven innings, one on a fielding error by second baseman Ernie Clement in the first inning and one on a walk to Ryan McMahon in the third.

Tyler Rogers relieved Gausman to start the eighth and worked a scoreless inning, allowing two hits but escaping unscathed when J.C. Escarra was stranded at second after a single and a Ben Rice single.

The game turned in the top of the ninth against Toronto reliever Louis Varland. Cody Bellinger led off with a line-drive single to center field. Goldschmidt followed and launched a fly ball to left field that cleared the wall for his ninth homer of the season, scoring Bellinger and giving the Yankees a 3-1 lead.

Varland, who entered with a 3.38 ERA, allowed two earned runs on two hits in his one inning of work and took the loss, falling to 3-2.

New York closer David Bednar entered for the bottom of the ninth and sealed the victory with a three-strikeout inning, retiring Andres Gimenez, George Springer and Nathan Lukes swinging. Bednar earned his 14th save of the season.

Fernando Cruz, who pitched a scoreless eighth inning, was credited with the win, improving to 4-1.

The Yankees improved to 42-27, while the Blue Jays fell to 34-37.

Offensively, New York managed only five hits. Dominguez went 1-for-4 with the homer, Goldschmidt was 1-for-4 with the two-run blast, and Bellinger, Rice and Escarra each had a single.

Toronto collected six hits. Okamoto was 1-for-3 with the homer and an RBI. Brandon Valenzuela singled, Ernie Clement singled, Charles McAdoo singled, Andres Gimenez singled, and Yohendrick Pinango doubled. Nathan Lukes went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts.

The Blue Jays had runners in scoring position in four different innings but went 0-for-8 in those situations and left seven men on base.

The victory evened the three-game series at one game apiece after Toronto won Friday’s opener 8-5. The Yankees had taken four of five from the Blue Jays in New York in May, but Toronto had won two of three in that earlier series.

New York snapped a two-game losing streak and improved to 4-3 on their current road trip, which continues with a Sunday finale in Toronto before returning home for a six-game homestand against the Chicago White Sox and Cincinnati Reds.

Toronto had won two of its previous three games but could not build on that momentum. The Blue Jays will host the Yankees again Sunday before embarking on a six-game road trip to Boston and Chicago.

The game’s most critical moment came in the top of the ninth when Goldschmidt’s homer broke a 1-1 tie and gave the Yankees the lead for good. Until that point, Gausman had dominated, and the Blue Jays bullpen had held firm. Varland’s inability to keep the ball in the park changed the outcome.

The Yankees also benefited from a strong defensive play in the fifth when shortstop Jose Caballero started a double play to erase a Toronto threat. Schlittler’s ability to escape jams kept the score close until the New York offense finally solved the Toronto bullpen.

The game was a contrast of styles: the Yankees relied on power, while the Blue Jays mounted small-ball threats but could not deliver the key hit.

New York manager Aaron Boone was ejected in the seventh inning after arguing a called third strike, but his team responded with the decisive rally two innings later.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of New York Yankees 5, Toronto Blue Jays 4, and its ELO system gave the Yankees a 55.00 percent probability to win. New York had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of minus 1.5 runs. The total score of four runs went over the over/under line of 7.5.