Aaron Judge hit a 2-run BOMB to centerfield in the bottom of the 7th to turn a close game into a 6-2 Yankee lead, en route to a 6-3 win on a chilly Tuesday night at Yankee Stadium. October baseball in the air.
The win gave the Yankees a 2-0 lead in the best-of-7 series for the American League pennant.
Gerrit Cole started, and breezed through the first 3 innings, but escaped a bases-loaded situation in the 4th, lost the zone, and left in the 5th — with bases loaded, 1 out, in a 3-1 game. Clay Holmes came in to get out of the inning with NY up 3-2.
Tim Hill and Tommy Kahnle were heroic — stifling Cleveland with shutout ball from the 6th through the 8th while the Yankees built back their lead. And then Luke Weaver pitched the 9th, allowing a meaningless solo homer but getting the outs.
“We’ll enjoy this tonite, but you gotta keep moving,” said manager Aaron Boone afterwards. “We need 2 more here; but we can’t get ahead of ourselves. It’s one game at a time. Excited to hand Clarke (Schmidt) the ball in game 3 and hopefully try to get another one.”
“The ballpen was great. Clay coming in in a huge spot there to get us out of the 5th and keep the lead for us,” added Boone. “And then Tim Hill was Huge.”
1. Yanks Jump to Lead on “He Dropped the Ball!” 1st Inning
Gleyber Torres continues to hit hit hit. He had 3 hits in this game, including a leadoff double to start the bottom of the 1st off Cleveland starter Tanner Bibee — Cleveland’s #2 starter this year with a 12-8 3.47 record.
Juan Soto followed with a single, sending Gleyber to 3rd. Aaron Judge then hit a mile high pop up to 2nd base, but Gold Glove-caliber shortstop Brayan Rocchio did his best Luis Castillo — dropping the ball while almost standing over 2nd base. Worse it bounded off the heel of his glove into right field as Gleyber scored from 3rd. NY 1 Cleveland 0.
WE’LL TAKE IT! pic.twitter.com/l32FRHE7JQ
— Talkin’ Yanks (@TalkinYanks) October 15, 2024
2. NY Knocks Out Bibee in 2nd Inning
Bibee got out of the 1st by striking out Austin Wells, getting Giancarlo Stanton to foul out, and striking out Jazz Chisholm Jr.
But the Yanks were right back at him in the bottom of the 2nd — Anthony Volpe led off with a single, Anthony Rizzo singled sending Volpe to 3rd, and Alex Verdugo doubled to left scoring Volpe. NY 2 Cleveland 0.
Dugie Drive ? pic.twitter.com/IVhLIxBGGi
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) October 16, 2024
Bibee got Gleyber Torres to pop out to 1st, and then Cleveland intentionally walked Juan Soto to get to Aaron Judge — and removed Bibee from the game, bringing in their #2 reliever in Cade Smith (6-1 1.91 this year) to pitch. Cleveland paid the price as Judge hit a high sac fly to centerfield — NY 3 Cleveland 0.
3. Cole Cruises Until Hitting Turbulence in 4th
Meanwhile Gerrit Cole was mostly cruising through the first 3 innings, pitching a 1-2-3 inning in the 1st, pitching around a leadoff single in the 2nd (by Josh Naylor), and pitching around a 1-out single and walk in the 3rd.
Gerrit Cole, 81mph Knuckle Curve (foul) and 95mph Elevated Fastball (swinging K), Individual Pitches + Overlay. pic.twitter.com/SOQRCL9JFq
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) October 16, 2024
But Cleveland kept putting good at bats on him — and ratcheted up the pressure in the 4th — loading the bases with 1 out on a leadoff single by Josh Naylor, a squibbler to shortstop by Lane Thomas that Jazz Chisholm Jr.had to charge from 3rd but couldn’t pick, and a 1-out walk to Andres Gimenez.
Cole came off the ropes — getting David Fry to foul out and striking out Rocchio to end the inning.
Gerrit Cole gets out of a bases loaded jam with a Knuckle Curve.
4th K pic.twitter.com/rm7NimZumm
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) October 16, 2024
Cleveland got to Cole in the 5th — a leadoff single by Steven Kwan, followed by a single by Manzardo and a walk to Ramirez loaded the bases with nobody out in a 3-0 game, Yankee lead.
Josh Naylor hit a sac fly to make it 3-1, and Cole walked Thomas and was gone.
4. Holmes Saves the Day
With bases loaded and 1 out, and NY clinging to a 3-1 lead, Clay Holmes came in and got an immediate grounder by Will Brennan to 2nd — Gleyber throwing to Volpe at 2nd for the force as a run scored to make it 3-2. Holmes then walked Gimenez to load the bases again and welcome to the Clay Holmes Rollercoaster Ride.
But Holmes struck out Austin Hedges swinging to end the threat and leave the bases loaded — NY still clinging to its 3-2 lead. PHEW.
Clay Holmes, Vicious 98mph Sinker. ? pic.twitter.com/WdE0pl3nBt
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) October 16, 2024
5. Hill Heroic
Tim Hill was an unsung hero of the game — coming in and making it look easy with a 1-2-3 inning in the 6th — strikeout, line out to 3rd, ground out — and then getting 2 groundouts to start the 7th — by that time NY had increased their lead to 4-2.
Tim Hill works a 1-2-3 inning! pic.twitter.com/Ih2Zdre2Hf
— Talkin’ Yanks (@TalkinYanks) October 16, 2024
6. Rizzo RBI Avails Horrid Yank Baserunning in 6th
The Cleveland bullpen did a good job keeping the Yanks at bay — Cade Smith pitched a shutout 3rd, Tim Herrin a shutout 4th, and Eli Morgan a shutout 5th. But NY jumped on Erik Sabrowski to start the 6th — Jazz Chisholm Jr.leading off with a double down the line in left. Anthony Volpe walked and the Yanks were cooking with 1st and 2nd, nobody out in a 3-2 game.
Chisholm F’s Up
Until Jazz Chisholm took too big a lead between 2nd and 3rd — and got picked off — catcher to 2nd. The Yanks appealed — Chisholm feeling he had evaded the tag despite being a dead duck.
Jazz’s rough postseason continues pic.twitter.com/vmPphuZ1H7
— Talkin’ Yanks (@TalkinYanks) October 16, 2024
The Yankee Stadium scorecard showed multiple replays on the big board of Jazz trying to evade the tag — but he looked out on all of them — while they played “What’s Up” by 4-Non Blondes on the Stadium speakers. It was funny. The lyrics:
“And I try
Oh my God, do I try
I try all the time
In this institution
And I pray
Oh my God, do I pray
I pray every single day
For revolution”
After 5 minutes the umps came out and said Chisholm was ruled out, out, out.
Rizzo RBI Double
Anthony Rizzo picked him and the Yankees up with an RBI double to right — scoring Volpe from 1st — NY 4 Cleveland 2.
Anthony plates Anthony ? pic.twitter.com/bDVRoJrbA9
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) October 16, 2024
Rizzo F’s Up
Anthony Rizzo then strayed too much from 2nd — and got picked off too in a rundown! Leading to John Sterling saying the Yanks ran the bases like drunks on the radio broadcast.
That’s what they do- run the bases like drunks! pic.twitter.com/YTaL72aZSK
— John Sterling Calls (@JSterlingCalls) October 16, 2024
7. Judge HR Puts Game Away in 7th
All was made good in the 7th, when Gleyber Torres led off (again) with a single (again) — and Aaron Judge hit a 2-run BOMB to Dead Center for a 6-2 Yankee lead!
All Rise for Our Captain ? pic.twitter.com/ZUZLldNegK
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) October 16, 2024
Our view — from the upper deck:
Judge homer — from the upper deck.
2-run HR makes it 6-2 Yanks in the 7th! pic.twitter.com/4fFOcCMKLx— Yankees.Blue (@Yankees_Blue) October 16, 2024
8. Kahnle Good
Tommy Kahnle got the last out of the top of the 7th in a 4-2 game, then — blessed with a 6-2 lead — pitched a shutout 8th.
9. Weaver Finishes It
And Luke Weaver came in to finish it in the 9th — throwing strikes — allowing a 1-out homer to 3rd baseman Jose Ramirez (39-118-.279 (.335 OBP) this year) to right, then getting consecutive ground outs for the old ballgame.
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