After a disappointing loss to Washington Nationals on Friday, the New York Yankees bounced back with a walk-off victory in the bottom of the 11th inning on Saturday. Heading into extra innings thanks to a Gleyber Torres single to right field, which drove in DJ LeMahieu, Torres managed to finish off the game once again, reaching on an infield single that drove in the winning run.
The Yankees have now pulled ahead of the .500 win percentage mark and will prepare for one final game against Washington on Sunday afternoon.
Good news and bad news for the Yankees:
In the victory, the Yankee offense once again struggled to a degree, recording six hits and striking out 17 times. The first four batters in the lineup accounted for nine strikeouts, an astounding number that must be cut down if the Yankees want to emerge victorious against better teams. Washington has struggled this season, but anytime you’re facing off against Max Scherzer, you’re guaranteed to have issues. He collected 14 Ks, as Kyle Higashioka was the only Yankee to record a run against the star pitcher.
Aaron Judge continues to struggle, seeing his average plummet to .245 after starting the season strong. His strike-out issues have ballooned, but Gleyber Torres had a stand-out performance, recording two RBIs and two hits on the afternoon.
As for the pitching, Corey Kluber lasted 5.2 innings, allowing six hits and two earned runs. His performance wasn’t disastrous, but he placed a lot of pressure on the bullpen that had a tough outing on Friday in the defeat. Over 5.1 innings, the relief arms allow just two hits and one run, an adequate performance. Closer Aroldis Chapman gave up his first run of the 2021 season, despite it being un-earned. Thanks to the extra innings rule this year that dictates an automatic runner on second base, Chapman’s streak will come to an end on paper.
In a game that was delayed two hours and 25 minutes due to rain, the Yankees will hopefully start on time at 1:05 PM on Sunday afternoon in the final game of a three-game series.