The New York Yankees took a 1-0 series lead against the Guardians in the ALDS last night. The win was fueled by timely home runs and a solid start from Gerrit Cole.
In a series where the Yankees are huge favorites, there was worry they would come out flat like other teams who had a break did (Braves & Astros). The Yankees went down early when Steven Kwan hit a solo home run off a 2-0 fastball right down the middle in the 3rd inning. The inning looked like it was going to get more out of hand after Rosario was hit by a pitch and Ramirez doubled setting up 2nd & 3rd with 1 out. The next batter, Naylor grounded to Rizzo and Rizzo inexplicably threw home when Rosario hadn’t taken off yet. This allowed the bases to be loaded with only 1 out. The nightmare start was upon the Yankees and the boo birds were ready to be rained down on Cole. Cole then proceeded to get Gonzalez to ground out to 3B, where Donaldson made a nice play to come home. Cole then struck out Gimenez on a 2-2 breaking ball below the zone. (He technically struck him out twice if the umpire would have called the previous pitch an obvious strike.)
In a four-minute span, it was the turning point of the game. Cole was about to be ripped apart on social media by all Yankee fans about how he couldn’t pitch in the postseason. Cole was dominant after the 3rd inning and gave the Yankees the start they needed. He finished with a final stat line of 6.1 IP 4 H 1ER 8K 1BB. A truly great performance from the Yankees ace. He walked off the mound to a well-deserved standing ovation in the 7th inning.
The other top performers of the night were Harrison Bader and Anthony Rizzo. Bader connected with a 3-2 fastball in the bottom of the 3rd for his first Yankee home run. It was a game-tying home run, and you could tell how pumped-up Bader was as he flew around the bases beating his chest and flexing his muscles.
A lot of Yankee fans questioned the mid-season trade of Bader for Montgomery, considering he wasn’t healthy at the time and starting pitching was a serious question for the Yankees. Bader could prove to be a valuable piece for the Yanks in the playoffs. He offers elite defense, speed on the bases, and playoff experience from his time with the Cardinals. His home run at bat was a great example of a veteran working the count and getting his pitch on 3-2 and doing damage with it.
The other huge at-bat of the night was Anthony Rizzo’s two run shot in the bottom of the 6th to put the Yanks ahead 4-1. It was massive insurance runs from the Yankees whose bullpen is a huge question mark for the playoffs. Rizzo is a huge part of this lineup especially hitting after Judge in the two hole. They will need him to be big if they want a chance at making a run.
The Yankees and Guardians will play Game 2 on Thursday (most likely Friday because of rain.) The pitching matchup is Bieber vs. Cortes. The Guardians will have their ace going, and the Yankees should feel just as confident with Cortes going who was their best pitcher this whole season.
Cam's Corner 