Yankees must survive last week of treacherous play

The fleeing train is improbably approaching the station. Still, like any decent action movie protagonist, the Yankees must overcome another huge hurdle or six to reach their desired destination.

Even after their best weekend of the season, in the midst of a six-game winning streak, it can’t be stressed enough how easily this final round can turn south for these guys. With a one-game lead for the best slot machine in the American League, the Yankees (89-67) return to action Tuesday night as they face the starving Blue Jays (87-69) on their first visit to turbulent Rogers Center since 2019. The Red Sox (88-68), meanwhile, will be in Baltimore against the unfortunate Orioles. Then the regular season ends with the Yankees hosting the AL East champions Rays, while the Jays welcome the O’s to Canada and the Bosox travel to Washington to face the terrible Nationals.

If the Yankees get their ticket to the playoffs, they’ll have earned it.

Thanks to this club’s dizzying rise and fall to get here, The Post has already set a (totally unconfirmed) record for ‘Here’s what they should do’ columns. Think of this as Barry Bonds’ 73rd home run of those missives – at least for the regular season. With so much at stake, with so little margin for error, a few tips for the Yankees to navigate this treacherous last week:

1. A very quick hook for Jameson Taillon. The freshman Yankee, like his profile predecessors Michael Pineda, Nathan Eovaldi and James Paxton, exhibited samples of the ceiling the Yankees were hoping to achieve by buying it from the Pirates last winter. He’s also pitched poorly at times, having missed five innings in nine of his 27 starts, and a partially torn tendon in his right ankle has sidelined him since September 6.

The right-hander returns to action with Tuesday night’s starting task, and to be fair, his last start came against these Blue Jays and he pitched effectively (seven innings, three runs). Still, with the Yankees taking advantage of the Monday off and with ace Gerrit Cole starting on Wednesday, there should be no hesitation in bailing Taillon early if problems arise. The recent returns of Domingo German, Michael King and Luis Severino to the injured list give Aaron Boone some intriguing mid-game and potential options for multiple innings.

2. A departure for Luke Voit in Toronto. Boone sent the Yankees first baseman quite a signal by not pitching him Sunday night against Red Sox left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez at Fenway. While the Yankees won of course, it will take a village to pull through last week. Voir saw the ball well in two games last year against Tuesday night Blue Jays starter Hyun Jin Ryu, with a 3-for-6 record with a homerun and a pair of inline singles (thanks, Baseball- Reference.com). Joey Gallo, meanwhile, is 1-9 with four strikeouts against Ryu, including a 0-3 with three Ks this month at Yankee Stadium. Why not start this series with DH-ing Sees and put the En fuego Stanton in left field?

3. More confidence in Clay Holmes. If the Yankees hadn’t stood up to survive the Red Sox on Sunday night, more attention would have been given to Boone lifting right-hander Holmes, a revelation since arriving from Pittsburgh for southpaw Joely Rodriguez when his Boston counterpart Alex Cora was pinched hit left-hander Travis Shaw for right-hander Christian Arroyo. Cora then left Shaw out for right-hander Jose Iglesias, who picked Rodriguez to trigger the Boston two-point frame.

Shaw went 4-5 against Holmes during their days on the Brewers and Pirates, respectively. However, Holmes has clearly raised his level of play since arriving in the Bronx. As a Yankee, he limited left-handed hitters to four singles and one walk in 19 home plate appearances (thanks, FanGraphs). Rodriguez, another commercially expiring acquisition (along with Rangers’ Gallo), also contributed. He is, however, expected to reside at a lower level than Holmes in Boone’s circle of trust.