The New York Yankees faced off against the Tampa Bay Rays on Wednesday night with lefty starter Jordan Montgomery on the mound.
Montgomery entered the game with a 2.72 ERA over 72.2 innings this season. His 81.3% left on base rate and 48.8% ground ball rate were the best in his career, but he got batted around a bit by Tampa, giving up nine hits and four earned runs over 6.0 innings. In fact, Montgomery was only allowing 0.87 home runs per nine but gave up two in the win.
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Key takeaways for the Yankees:
1.) Jose Trevino continues to ball
The legend of catcher Jose Treviño continues to build after another stellar performance on Wednesday. Treviño was hitting .278 heading into the game with five homers and 19 RBIs. However, he finished with two hits, including a two-run homer in the 8th inning to give the Yankees a 5–4 lead. Treviño now hosts a .283 average with a 33.9% on base rate and .478 slugging percentage, nearly better than Giancarlo Stanton for context.
Treviño hasn’t only been a magisterial offensive weapon, but he’s also one of the best defensive catchers in baseball, helping elevate the Yankees pitching units.
2.) Aaron Judge is worth every penny
Once again, star slugger Aaron Judge showed his quality, smashing two homers, bringing his season total to 27. Judge currently leads Major League Baseball in the home run category and ranks 6th with 52 RBIs. Hosting a .302 average, Judge is well on his way toward winning an MVP if he can maintain this pace, and games like this against AL East rivals really showcase his value to the team.
3.) The bullpen steps up
With Montgomery struggling to get the job done on Wednesday, the bullpen was forced to pick up the slack. Clarke Schmidt, Michael King, and Clay Holmes combined for 3.0 innings of work, giving up just one hit and striking out three batters. They finish the final 3.0 innings in just 49 pitches, helping Montgomery get out of trouble. Schmidt picked up the win and Holmes the save, propelling the Yankees to 51 wins on the season.