“That was last year,” Vladimir Guerrero Jr. bluntly told a throng of reporters in the visitors’ dugout after batting practice. 

Fair enough, especially given the circumstances of the moment for the Blue Jays, who are still trying to find some steadiness to their roster and their game after a slow and injury-filled opening to the year. 

Put simply, “we need to start playing better,” said manager John Schneider. “Your antenna always goes up when you’re playing a division team. I think the guys like playing here. There’s always a good atmosphere here and they’re a damn good team. So this is a good this is a good test for us, these next four days.”

Well, they blew the first part Monday night, when Yariel Rodriguez came on with a two-run lead, two outs and the bases clear and proceeded to surrender two-run homers to Cody Bellinger and Jazz Chisholm Jr. that propelled the Yankees to a 7-6 win.

The Blue Jays had done so much well to that point, with Ernie Clement hitting a three-run homer in the fourth, George Springer responding with a solo shot in the fifth – his first since March 30, a span of 23 games – when the Yankees tied the game 3-3 the previous half-inning, and Ernie Clement run-scoring fielder’s choice in the sixth that made it 5-3.

Canadian lefty Adam Macko made his big-league debut in the sixth, coming in with two out and one on to promptly retire J.C. Escarra on four pitches to end the inning, and then came back out to get Paul Goldschmidt and Ben Rice to start the seventh.

That handed a clean slate to Rodriguez, who gave up a single to Aaron Judge before Bellinger went deep, then walked pinch-hitter Trent Grisham before Chisholm dinged one off the foul pole, a 5-3 lead turned into a 7-5 deficit in the span of four batters.

Jesus Sanchez ripped a pinch-hit RBI double in the ninth as the Blue Jays tried to rally off David Bednar, but with two on, Springer struck out and Guerrero grounded out to end an entertaining opening tilt between the rivals.

The Blue Jays need their bullpen to run deep right now with Patrick Corbin, who only went four innings while avoiding major damage but still surrendering three runs, and, for the time being, Spencer Miles in a bulk role, fortifying their depleted rotation.

Unable to consistently count on five innings out of two starters’ spots puts enormous pressure on the other starters – Dylan Cease has thrown seven innings in each of his past three starts and needs to get deep again Tuesday – and a busy bullpen covering gaps.

Miles went 3.2 innings and a career-high 56 pitches Saturday and Thursday’s finale in the Bronx will be built around him throwing bulk again, behind an opener if not as the starter.

Having missed most of the past three seasons due to injury, navigating his workload will be somewhat “uncharted,” said Schneider, and “with his history, you don’t want to move him back and forth too much. If we’re going to do it, try to be consistent with it … so trying to be a little bit more strategic and consistent with him for the time being.”