If you try distract yourself after devastating Yankees
losses by watching or reading about other baseball games, well, you’ve come to the right spot. The horrors persisted last night, the Yankees inventing yet another (yes, another) incomprehensible way to the lose, and this time, hilariously, largely thanks to every single player they added on a near universally praised deadline day.Thankfully, I suppose, there was other baseball yesterday. Let’s take a look, and see if the Yankees were at least
fortunate enough not to lose ground despite their largesse.
Kansas City Royals (55-55) 9, Toronto Blue Jays (64-47) 3
The Yankees should’ve found a way to make up ground on Toronto yesterday, but at least they didn’t fall further behind. The Royals dominated the Blue Jays to take the series opener going away.
It was a slugfest early on, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. putting the Jays in front with a solo homer in the first, but Mike Yastrzemski responding in the second with a two-run shot, his first as a Royal in his first at-bat with the club:
And Bobby Witt Jr. opened the score up a bit with a three-run homer in the third:
Those were the only blows surrendered by Kevin Gausman, who struck out five and walked none in six innings, but they were big blows, and the Royals were in control all evening. The ever steady Michael Wacha was excellent, shutting down Toronto after Vladito’s dinger, tossing eight innings of one-run ball.
Kansas City turned it into a laugher in the ninth. Salvador Perez and Adam Frazier added homers while Maikel Garcia tossed in an RBI single to make it 9-1. Toronto scored a couple runs in the bottom half off Thomas Hatch to make the score nominally closer. The Jays have quietly cooled off a bit, now having lost five in their last six tries.
Philadelphia Phillies (62-47) 5, Detroit Tigers (64-47) 4
Look no further than last night’s clash in Philly for proof that newly acquired top relievers can actually record a save in their first games with new teams. The Phillies staged a late rally against Detroit, giving Jhoan Durán a chance to introduce himself to Philadelphia in style.
The Tigers led 3-0 into the seventh, Jack Flaherty shutting out the Phillies through the first six frames. But Flaherty was pulled after allowing a leadoff single, and Tyler Holton let the next two hitters reach. A sac fly, a single, and one last RBI single from Kyle Schwarber capped off a three-run rally that tied the game:
Wenceel Peréz homered off Orion Kerkering to start the eighth, Kerkering relieving Ranger Suárez after seven innings of three-run ball. But Detroit’s 4-3 advantage would be short-lived. Otto Kemp tied the game with an RBI double in the bottom of the eighth, and a two-out, hustle infield single from Bryson Stott would nudge the Phillies ahead:
That allowed Durán to make his debut on his first night with the team, and he made short work of the Tigers, retiring the side on just four pitches. Would’ve been nice to see something similar from David Bednar or Camilo Doval last night in Miami.
Boston Red Sox (60-51) 2, Houston Astros (64-47) 1 (ten innings)
Boston’s experience the last couple of days has been sort of the inverse of New York’s. The Yankees drew applause for their aggressive deadline work, adding seven players that emphatically addressed team’s needs. Meanwhile, Red Sox fans were left to wonder about Craig Breslow and Co., as the Yankees and Jays loaded up but Boston added just Dustin May and Steven Matz to a roster that cried out for more.
So of course, the Yankees suffered a devastating loss in their first game post-deadline, and the Red Sox celebrated a scintillating win. C’est la vie.
Trailing 1-0 for most of the night, the Red Sox came back to tie things in the seventh. Hunter Brown had been his typically excellent self, carrying a shut out through sixt, but Boston got runners on second and third against Brown in the seventh, and Wilyer Abreu knotted the score at one with a sac fly:
We went to the tenth tied, thanks to top-tier relief work from three former members of the Yankee organization; Garrett Whitlock, Aroldis Chapman, and Greg Weissert all tossed perfect, 1-2-3 innings. That set the stage in the home half, with rookie Roman Anthony coming to the plate with the winning run 90 feet away and no out. He just had to elevate the ball, and he did more than enough, roping one over the head of center fielder Chas McCormick for his first career walk-off hit:
After all that, the Red Sox trail the Yankees by just one game for second in the AL East. It’s not what you want.
Other Games
- Seattle Mariners (59-52) 4, Texas Rangers (57-54) 3
The first two games of this big AL West matchup have gone to Seattle, this one in dramatic fashion. The Rangers took an early 3-1 run lead by scoring three runs in the third off Logan Gilbert, though that’s all the right-hander would allow in six otherwise strong innings. The Mariners nicked one back with newcomer Josh Naylor’s RBI double in the fifth off Jack Leiter, but Texas went to the bullpen there, and held the M’s scoreless into the ninth. Dominic Canzone singled to lead off against Robert Garcia, and in a 2-0 count, J.P. Crawford hit one a long way to right:
There was no doubt off Crawford’s bat, and the Mariners now have some breathing room as they cling to the third Wild Card spot in the AL.
- Los Angeles Dodgers (64-46) 5, Tampa Bay Rays (54-57) 0
The Rays’ deep, deep fade continues. Tampa was completely shut down by Clayton Kershaw, who managed once again to get the most out of his now-limited arsenal, tossing six shutout while allowing five hits and zero walks. He turned a 5-0 lead over to Justin Wrobleski, who earned his first save by finishing off the shutout with three innings of his own. The Dodgers hit Shane Baz hard, with Freddie Freeman doing the bulk of the damage with a two-run double and a solo homer. Tampa Bay has lost eight of nine and are in danger of completely falling out of the playoff picture.
More from pinstripealley.com:
- Yankees acquire Doval, Caballero at Trade Deadline buzzer
- Yankees get both quantity and quality in upgrading bullpen
- Yankees Trade Deadline Coverage
- Aaron Judge heading to the IL with a flexor strain
- Yankees 2025 draft tracker: 18 of 19 draftees sign
- Pinstripe Alley’s Top 100 Yankees
- 2000 Yankees Diary: The 25th Anniversary of MLB’s Last Three-peat
