In case you were sleeping under a rock, Drew Rasmussen gave the Yankees their worst performance in playoff history by nearly no-hitting them in Game 1 of the ALDS, including a (for them) record 23 swinging strikes, a feat all the more remarkable given that he didn’t pick up his tenth until the top of the fourth.
It was a dazzling outing, but here are my favorites from his night under the spotlight.
1. Top 1 – Ben Rice strikes out swinging.
This was the tone setter. After a cutter to what should have
been Bronx star Ben Rice’s wheelhouse, Rasmussen fed two change ups that Rice whiffed on each time. Delicious.
2. Drew Rasmussen Strikes Out Spencer Jones
Ok to show you this next pitch we need context.
The fourth inning is where Rasmussen settles in. This video comes back late from the highlight grab by Simpson and nearly misses a ludicrous cutter. I can’t imagine what this must look like out of the hand for Spencer Jones, but it must have been houdini magic.
Seeing that, Rasmussen fed him another cutter in the zone to let him try and hit it — Jones couldn’t…
Rasmussen then follows it up with what might be my favorite pitch of the night, going up and in on Jones and completely blowing his mind. He sees another fastball, he knows he’s supposed to swing, and he doesn’t stand a chance, because this time it’s the four seam variety. Brilliant.
3. George Lombard Jr. strikes out swinging
This is another sequence to be adored. Rasmussen freezes Lombard with a cutter inside, fans him on a change low and away that Lombard did not stand a chance on, and then breaks out the four-seam again. This trick works on both hands.
It’s a bit textbook, but it’s also phenomenal pitch calling by Hicks.
4. Top 5 – Trent Grisham called out on strikes.
Grisham saw three pitches this at bat and doesn’t take the bat off his shoulder, and if I’d been standing there I don’t know that I could have done more than wet myself. It was a change that drops in high and away, a cutter down and in, and then Rasmussen challenges Grisham with a sinker to make you think you need to hit the deck — but whips back into the zone. Yeesh.
5. Top 3 – Cody Bellinger strikes out swinging.
Ok, chronologically this should have been second, but I can’t help myself.
Why this one? It’s just so damn funny. The third inning is one of the few where Rasmussen struggled and he was feeding Bellinger above the zone, but the star outfielder couldn’t help himself and tried to get climb the ladder and hit this?? When he’d already whiffed outside the zone on a closer pitch??? What was he thinking?
