With 162 games in the books, the Yankees’ second season begins tonight. The records have been reset to 0-0, and now it all comes down to a best-of-three series with the Red Sox at Yankee Stadium. The Yankees must win twice in the next three days, or the quest for title number 28 will be over in a flash.
With hours to go until the action starts, the Yankees have announced the lineup that will take the field against Boston. It’s a righty-heavy lineup, as was anticipated with the Red Sox throwing the left-handed
Garrett Crochet in Game 1:
Paul Goldschmidt will hit leadoff, the wily veteran having crushed lefties to the tune of a .336/.411/.570 slash line this year. The Yankees would love for Goldschmidt to find a way to set the table for Aaron Judge, batting second. Judge posted a cartoonish 1.279 OPS versus southpaws this year, and though he struggled a bit with Crochet himself, there’s no doubt Judge can get a hold of one against the Red sox ace:
Cody Bellinger bats third and starts in left, Giancarlo Stanton cleans up and will DH, and Amed Rosario clocks in batting fifth and playing second. Rosario proved to be a solid deadline pickup for New York, posting a .788 OPS in 16 games off the bench, and he’s got a career .800 OPS against lefties, which gives the Yankees enough confidence to pencil him in in the middle of the order.
Trent Grisham starts in center, Anthony Volpe gets the start at short, and Jose Cabellero hits eighth and plays third. Many Yankee fans surely would’ve preferred to see Volpe on the bench and Jazz Chisholm Jr. in the lineup, but for today at least, Chisholm sits against a lefty (Chisholm also may still be feeling effects from the hit-by-pitch that forced him out of last Saturday’s game).
Austin Wells rounds out the lineup, Ben Rice taking a seat to start the game. Though Rice, Chisholm, and Ryan McMahon will start on the bench, all are liable to appear later in the game, whether to face a right-handed reliever or as a defensive substitute.
Also, here’s a look at the lineup for the Red Sox tonight:
So there you have it. We have the lineups; now all that’s left is to play ball. Max Fried will toe the slab at 6:08 p.m. EST, with the broadcast on ESPN. Will he deliver the Yankees a huge Game 1 win? We’ll find out soon enough.
