We were treated to a fun pitching matchup between Chris Sale and Gerrit Cole in the Bronx on Saturday.
Sale blinked first in the second, allowing a run on a double and a single, despite pumping upper 90s heat with his fastball. After a couple more quiet innings, the Braves flipped the script in the fifth, as doubles from Dubon and Yaz, followed by singles from Riley and Jarvis scored two runs, giving Atlanta a 2-1 lead. An Acuna liner nearly scored another two, but instead was caught for an out.
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ABS strikeout-turned-walk and a triple tied the game up in the bottom of the frame. Chris Sale struck out the next batter but was called for a balk to give the Yankees the go-ahead run. A fired-up Sale was arguing with the ump and Walt Weiss interdicted, getting ejected himself, but saving Sale from receiving what I would guess would have been an ejection. Things spiraled a bit with one out, as Sale allowed a double and issues a walk, but a double-play ended the inning with the one run deficit held at just that, as a visibly frustrated Sale walked to the dugout. The sixth held 1-2-3 frames for both starting pitchers, but spelled the end for Sale, while Cole remained in the game. Sale had 6.0 innings of 3 run ball on 8 strikeouts and 2 walks.
Mederos was first out of the bullpen for Atlanta after Cole shut down the Braves’ offense in the seventh. Mederos allowed short porch homer to lead off the frame. His command was shaky as he issued a walk and hit the next batter, but struck out the final two to end the inning there. Ronald Acuna crushed a solo homer against the Yankee’s pen on a full count after a long at-bat in the eighth.
Michael Harris reached with two outs, prompting a pitching change to prevent Ozzie from being able to bat right-handed. Ozzie fouled off a few pitches on a 2-2 count before ultimately grounding out and leaving the Braves with 3 outs and down 1 run. Danny Young gave back the run on a solo shot to dead center to lead off the ninth, as his existence on the roster continues to be perplexing. Young funnily enough ended up striking out the side, with a single and walk in there as well. Yaz walked to put the tying run at the plate with one out for the 8 and 9 spots. Riley struck out, but Dominic Smith brought Yaz home with a ground ball single up the middle, after Yaz took second on defensive indifference. That brough Drake Baldwin to the plate, representing the winning run. Baldwin struggled with Bednar’s splitter and ultimately lined out softly to right field, ending the game.
That’s a series loss and tomorrow will be a rough matchup, with Grant Holmes vs Cam Schlittler. Join us as the Braves look to avoid a sweep at 1:35 PM ET.
