Nestor Cortes Jr pitched 6 innings of 1-hit, shutout baseball, and then the rains came — the game was called after an hour and the Yankees had a 2-0 win.
Aaron Judge went 1 for 2 with a double and a walk, and was due to lead off the bottom of the 7th, an inning which never came. Xander Bogaerts went 0 for 2 with a walk so Judge retakes the batting title lead by a hair:
- Aaron Judge .314
- Xander Bogaerts .314
- Luis Arraez .313
- Jose Abreu .304
- Nathaniel Lowe .304
The wait for Judge’s 61st continues.
“We’re on the dugout, hoping he hits it every fly ball,” said Cortes. “We’re screaming with the fans.”
The Yankees are now 94-58, in 1st by 8.5 over Toronto with 10 games to play. They play Toronto the next 3 days so one Yankee win would clinch the division. Tampa is 10.5 out; eliminated from the division title race.
1. Cortes 1-Hitter
Nestor Cortes was in top form — mowing through the Red Sox lineup. The only trouble he saw was in the 4th, when a leadoff walk and a grounds rule double by Rob Refsnyder put 2nd and 3rd with 2 outs. But he struck out Triston Casas to end the threat.
Cortes pitched 1-2-3 innings in the 2nd, 3rd, 5th, and 6th. He got help from Aaron Hicks, who made a catch at the wall in left in the top of the first on a JD Martinez long fly.
Comin’ up against a Hicks wall 👏 pic.twitter.com/skqTLw6GMA
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) September 25, 2022
Oddly enough, he was done for the night after 6 innings and 101 pitches — and Clarke Schmidt had finished warming in the bullpen and was about to take the mound in the top of the 7th when the rains came.
So Cortes got credit for a complete game, 1 hitter. His record on the season now: 11-4 2.56.
2. Judge 1 for 2 with a Double & Walk
The Yanks and Aaron Judge were up against top rookie top prospect Brayan Bello, a sinkerballer who had allowed only 1 homerun in 47 innings of pitching so far this season. Make it 53 innings.
Judge led off the game for the Yanks with a double down the line at 3rd base, walked in the 3rd, hit a fly ball out to center in the 5th, and that was it for his at bats.
Aaron Judge leads off the game with a double
(via @TalkinYanks) pic.twitter.com/GfTnnfaqFJ
— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) September 25, 2022
3. Trevino Clutch Hit Plates Yank Run
The Yanks got their 1st run in the bottom of the 4th: Oswaldo Cabrera led off with a double, but Bello then struck out Harrison Bader and Aaron Hicks. With 2 outs, Jose Trevino came up with yet another clutch hit — a single to left for a run.
Trevi Time ⏰ pic.twitter.com/WqQRUbQVIk
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) September 26, 2022
4. Yanks Get Rain-Aided Run in 6th
In the bottom of the 6th with hard rain coming down, Marwin Gonzalez hit a 2-out can-of-corn fly ball to right, but Rob Refsnyder dropped the ball in the heavy rain, and Aaron Hicks, who had been on 1st and was running on the play, scored for a 2-0 Yankee lead.
Rob Refsnyder dropped a routine fly and the Yankees go up 2-0 😱 pic.twitter.com/dfa46Yy4OD
— ESPN (@espn) September 26, 2022
Oswald Peraza struck out to end the inning and the tarp came on the field — and never was removed — for the old ballgame.
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