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Virtually nothing has come easy for the Yankees this year.
But the AL wild-card series just did — at least they made it look that way, even without Aaron Judge.
A much more dangerous divisional opponent awaits, but the Yankees will be flying high into the ALDS after making light work of the Red Sox, finishing off a two-game sweep with an emphatic 9-2 win over their rivals Wednesday night in front of a jubilant sellout crowd at Yankee Stadium.
After fending off the pesky Red Sox for a second straight year in this opening round, the Yankees will now try to conquer the Rays, whom they could never chase down for the AL East in the final months of the regular season. Game 1 is Saturday at Tropicana Field, and unlike last year when they stretched themselves thin to beat the Red Sox and paid for it against the Blue Jays, they should enter the ALDS in a strong position to start Gerrit Cole or Carlos Rodón, and possibly with Judge even ready to join the party.
“The best player in baseball isn’t even playing right now and we’ve been dominating,” said Cam Schlittler, who led the domination in Game 1. “So we’re only going to get stronger when [Judge] gets back.
“It’s good to get it done in two. Now we’re set up perfectly for Tampa.”
The Yankees followed the same script in Game 2 as they did in Game 1 — a dominant starting pitcher protecting a small lead until their bats could break the game open — just with some different actors leading the way. Max Fried tossed six innings of one-run ball, nearly matching what Schlittler did Tuesday, while Cody Bellinger delivered the knockout punch that Ben Rice did the night before, clobbering a three-run homer in the sixth inning that put the champagne on ice.
Emphasizing the Yankees’ greatest strength — and the biggest reason they have high hopes and dreams for October — in their rotation, Fried struck out six and scattered three hits across six innings. When Willson Contreras snuck a home run over the right field wall against him in the sixth inning, it snapped a 26-inning scoreless streak by Yankees pitchers in the postseason against the Red Sox, dating back to Game 2 of last year’s AL wild-card series.
“That’s been the biggest strength for us throughout the year,” manager Aaron Boone said. “It sustained us. It got us through some difficult times. And I feel like they’re all in a good place right now.”
Contreras’ homer pulled the Red Sox within 2-1, but the Yankees found an immediate answer in the bottom of the frame, first with a steady dose of small ball before Bellinger’s long ball.
Rookie Spencer Jones provided the spark, using his speed and hustle to reach first base on a dropped third strike from Red Sox lefty Garrett Crochet, who was making his first appearance since April 25. Jones then stole second and took third as the throw trickled into center field, allowing him to score on fellow rookie George Lombard Jr.’s lined single that made it 3-1 in another dash of homegrown happenings.
Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Trent Grisham, who were both on the bench for Game 1, followed with singles to load the bases (Grisham on a bunt to third base, with an off-target throw from Caleb Durbin).
After the Red Sox put Crochet out of his misery and brought in righty Garrett Whitlock, Austin Wells hit a sacrifice fly for the second straight night before Ryan McMahon hit a soft groundout to score another run for the 5-1 lead.
The Red Sox then intentionally walked Rice, who homered twice and drove in six runs in Game 1, but it backfired as Bellinger lifted a three-run homer to the short porch that took forever to land, the crowd entering a frenzy well before it did.
“I had a lot of confidence in them,” Judge said. “Going into the series, obviously I wanted to be out there with them, but going into it, this is a dangerous group, and they’ve showed it here in this series.”
For a second straight night, the Yankees pounced on the Red Sox bullpen once manager Chad Tracy pulled his starter early in the fifth inning of a 1-0 game — Payton Tolle in Game 1 and Sonny Gray in Game 2. And on both nights, they turned it into as much of a laugher as you will find in the playoffs, sending them full steam ahead into the ALDS.
“At that point,” Chisholm said, “when everyone’s working in sync like that, especially the talent we have on this team, I feel like we’re unbeatable.”
