Just four days ago, the New York Yankees finished dropping a three game series against the Orioles at home. Now on the road, the Yankees finally pieced together some offense and beat the Orioles by a score of 8-4.
Gleyber Torres led the way
Gleyber Torres put together a game he won’t forget. Torres went 4-for-4 with two dingers and four ribbies.
His first time up, he roped a 1-1 splitter to left field and gone for a solo homer. His next time up, he cracked a double.
The third time he came to the plate, the Yankees were trailing 4-2 in the sixth inning, shortly after catcher Gary Sanchez had a homer himself. Torres took an 0-2 fastball to left for a three run home run to give the Yankees a 5-4 lead. Torres also had a single in the eighth, and if he had another plate appearance, he would need just a triple for the cycle.
In the ninth inning, first baseman Luke Voit popped a 1-2 sinker into the seats for a three-run bomb, putting the Yankees up 8-4 to seal the deal.
Something that is worrisome about the game is the fact that Aaron Judge went 0-for-5 with four strikeouts. He isn’t getting a ton of friendly calls behind the plate, but nonetheless he shouldn’t be striking out as much as he has been. Like we said yesterday, it’s all about situational hitting.
Big Maple’s first Yankee win
Getting a no decision in his first Yankee game, James “Big Maple” Paxton picked up his first Yankee win on Thursday against the Orioles.
Paxton pitched 5 1/3 innings while giving up four runs on eight hits while striking out nine and walking two. Paxton threw 99 pitches and threw first pitch strikes to 14 of his 25 batters. He got eight of his nine strikeouts on variations of his fastball, and was hitting 96 MPH consistently on the radar gun with the four-seam.
Once Paxton was finished, Tommy Kahnle came in for 1 2/3 scoreless innings of relief, followed by Zack Britton and Aroldis Chapman with scoreless innings to close it out.
Reminder: We’re only seven games into the season. The Yankees are 3-4, but the Astros (who we play next) are 2-5 and the Red Sox are 2-6. Plus, the Cubs are also off to a 1-4 start. Those four teams area handful of the World Series favorites.
Fans just need to patient. The Yankees will heal, and they will win games.
The Yankees actually have Friday off with the whole home opener, next day off thingy. So the Yankees and the O’s finish off this three game series on Saturday and Sunday.
Saturday’s game will be at 7:05PM on YES Network and Fox Sports Go. MASN may be available dependent on where you live and which TV provider you have, and that is another way to watch.
JA Happ gets the ball for the Yankees against the Orioles’ Dylan Bundy. That will be a rematch of this past Sunday at Yankee Stadium.