The New York Yankees survived another rollercoaster finish on Friday night, edging the St. Louis Cardinals 4-3 in a game that highlighted both their promise and their flaws.
Jazz Chisholm Jr. provided the fireworks with a towering two-run homer, while Jasson Dominguez added an RBI single that looked like insurance but instead became essential.
For stretches, the Yankees looked like a team finding its stride at the perfect time. Yet for others, they looked like a team teetering, clinging to an early lead and praying the bullpen wouldn’t crumble.
For fans, it was the kind of night that perfectly mirrored the 2025 season: flashes of brilliance wrapped in lingering anxiety.
Chisholm and Dominguez Spark the Offense
Chisholm wasted no time igniting the Bronx crowd. In the opening inning, he turned on a pitch and crushed a two-run homer that have the Yankees a 3-0 lead.
The blast wasn’t just a scoreboard boost; it was a shot of adrenaline, a reminder of his ability to swing momentum instantly.
Dominguez added to the energy with an RBI single in the third, showcasing his knack for staying calm in big moments.
Still, despite traffic on the bases throughout the game, New York left plenty of runs stranded. That inability to capitalize has been their recurring flaw, leaving slim margins and keeping opponents alive longer than necessary.
Gil Delivers Encouraging Start
Luis Gil gave the Yankees a performance they sorely needed: five-plus innings of poise. He limited the Cardinals to one run on four hits, walking three and striking out four.
More importantly, he showed resilience in escaping jams and leaning on his fastball when it mattered.
Gil cruised through five innings before faltering in the sixth, where Boone summoned Mark Leiter Jr. to clean things up.
Leiter did his job, recording two quick outs and preserving the lead. For Gil, it was another step toward reestablishing himself after losing most of the year to a spring training lat strain.
His ERA dipped to 5.14, and while that number still leaves room for skepticism, his growing consistency suggests he may yet become a stabilizing force.
The Yankees don’t need him to dominate; they need him to reliably hand the baton to the bullpen.
Doval and Weaver Walk a Tightrope
If Gil brought calm, the bullpen brought chaos. Camilo Doval entered in the seventh and immediately lost command.
A single, a walk, and a hit-by-pitch loaded trouble, with two runs eventually crossing the plate—one directly under his watch and another on Weaver’s wild pitch.
Doval’s recent stretch is unsettling. He owns a 6.35 ERA across his last seven outings, and each trip to the mound feels like watching someone juggle glass—eventually, something will shatter.
The Yankees envisioned Doval as a late-inning weapon, but right now, he’s anything but automatic.
Weaver’s outing wasn’t stress-free either. He two quick outs in the eighth, but then allowed a single and committed a throwing error that advanced the tying run into scoring position.
Thankfully for the Yankees, he struck out Nolan Gorman to escape, preserving a lead that felt far smaller than one run.
Goldschmidt’s Surprise Return
One subplot nearly overshadowed the finish: Paul Goldschmidt’s unexpected reappearance. After missing several days with what seemed like a potential IL stint, he was used as a defensive replacement in the eighth.
His quick recovery surprised many, given the initial concern about his status.
Whether Boone reinserts him into the starting lineup over the weekend remains unclear, but his availability changes the series outlook.
Playoff Implications
Friday’s win pushed New York to 65 victories, stretching their AL Wild Card lead to 1.5 games after Cleveland’s loss. It is a small but meaningful cushion in a race that will likely come down to the season’s final weeks.
Each game now carries outsized weight, and the Yankees’ formula—early offense, steady starting pitching, and high-wire bullpen acts—feels both dangerous and unsustainable.
Yet baseball seasons are marathons, not sprints, and sometimes surviving turbulence matters more than style.
Chisholm’s power, Dominguez’s poise, and Gil’s steadiness gave the Yankees just enough. But as the bullpen wobbles, the question lingers: how long can they keep balancing on the tightrope?
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