Gibbons ready to have just a normal week

NEW YORK — It was the week that was, Toronto manager John Gibbons said with his usual good humor before the Blue Jays dropped a 6-0 decision to the division-rival Yankees on Tuesday night at Yankee Stadium.

“It was an unusual week,” he said with a chuckle. “You know, I enjoyed watching some of those games on TV. Not that many, though. It gives you a different perspective.

“So that’s over. It’s been kind of [a bad] show, if you want to know the truth.”

Gibbons said he intends to behave for the Yankees series and try to remain on the bench for each of the three games, although one never knows. So far so good on Tuesday night.

“He’s passionate,” Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. “But I knew that from before. John’s always the kind of guy who’s going to stick up for his players. That’s what you’re supposed to do as a manager and sometimes that’s going to get you tossed.”

But not with this kind of regularity: Ejection, ejection, three-game suspension, two quiet days, then another ejection on Sunday.

In the middle of it all, he took the heart of his lineup and moved it up three notches, batting Jose Bautista first, Josh Donaldson second and Edwin Encarnacion third.

That move was made this past Thursday for the opener of a four-game series against the Twins at Target Field. The Jays won three of the four games there after suffering a three-game sweep at home against the Rays.

Desperate times call for desperate measures.

“Well, the other stuff wasn’t working, it’s as simple as that,” Gibbons said. “You know, get your top guys up there in the first inning. We did a little bit of stuff like that last year, maybe not this extreme, just trying to shake things up a little bit.”

Girardi said the trio of power hitters is a big challenge to navigate anywhere in the order, simply …

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