A day which started with a Yankees win ended with them climbing out of last place.
The title for biggest win of the Yankees season stood for less than 24 hours as the Bombers completed back-to-back comeback victories over the Rays. In doing so, New York halted the hottest team in baseball, proving they could stand toe-to-toe with a squad that is already threatening to run away with the division. They showed a grit and determination that you would hope characterize any team with championship aspirations, building some much-needed offensive momentum as they go for the series win tomorrow afternoon.
The showdown in the Bronx was just the appetizer for a jam-packed day of baseball. Eight of the Yankees’ AL rivals took to the field so let’s recap the results to those contests.
Atlanta Braves (25-14) 2, Toronto Blue Jays (23-16) 5
A meeting between two of the most high-powered offenses in the league actually turned out to be a relatively low scoring affair thanks to the efforts of the starting pitchers. Braves second-year starter Bryce Elder matched up against José Berríos, with both limiting their opposition to two runs. Ultimately, an A.J. Minter meltdown in the seventh gave Toronto a lead they would not surrender.
Atlanta actually opened the scoring in the second. Eddie Rosario reached on a one-out single, scoring on a booming Marcell Ozuna home run after Berríos grooved him a full-count fastball.
Toronto steadily clawed back the deficit, scoring a run in fourth on a Vladimir Guerrero Jr. leadoff double and Matt Chapman RBI single and a tying run in the fifth on a Kevin Kiermaier double and Bo Bichette RBI single. In the decisive seventh, the Blue Jays logged three straight one-out singles from Kiermaier, George Springer, and Bichette to grab their first lead before adding a fourth on a Vladito sac fly.
Danny Jansen gave his team a final insurance run in the eighth with a double to drive in Whit Merrifield as the Blue Jays locked up a 5-2 victory.
Pittsburgh Pirates (21-19) 0, Baltimore Orioles (26-13) 2
A matchup between two of the young, exciting teams who look like they could be problems for the league in the near-future went the Orioles’ favor. Tyler Wells turned in the most dominant outing of his young career, logging seven scoreless one-hit innings while tallying a career-high eight strikeouts and 18 swings and misses.
The Pirates starter — former Yankee Roansy Contreras, acquired in the Jameson Taillon trade — was none-too-shabby in his own right, giving up two runs in seven innings. Both runs came via solo home run from two of the Orioles’ cornerstones of the future, Adley Rutschman in the first and Gunnar Henderson in the second.
Yennier Cano and Félix Bautista pitched a scoreless inning each to wrap up the 2-0 victory over a Pirates squad that at one point owned the best record in the NL, but has now lost 11 of their last 12.
Houston Astros (20-19) 1, Chicago White Sox (14-27) 3
On a day filled with impressive starting pitching performances, this one certainly fit that bill. Dylan Cease gave the White Sox six scoreless with five strikeouts while Brandon Bielak held Chicago to a run in five innings. Luis Robert Jr. opened the scoring with a solo shot in the fourth, and the score would remain at 1-0 until the seventh.
Mauricio Dubón leveled the score with an RBI single off White Sox reliever Reynaldo López, but the home team responded with a pair in the eighth on RBI singles from Robert and Seby Zavala. Jeremy Peña, Yoán Moncada, and Tim Anderson all logged 3-for-4 performances as the White Sox outlasted the Astros for a 3-1 victory.
Other Matchups
Seattle Mariners (20-19) 5, Detroit Tigers (17-21) 0
Mariners rookie Bryce Miller continues to wow as he pitched seven scoreless innings allowing just three hits to bring his ERA to 0.47 through his first trio of major league starts. Jarred Kelenic continued his revenge tour with a two-run blast while Teoscar Hernández went 3-for-4 with a solo shot and RBI single.
Chicago Cubs (19-20) 1, Minnesota Twins (22-18) 11
The Yankees traded Hayden Wesneski to the Cubs for Scott Effross last deadline and it’s safe to say he’s not having the most fun to start his season. He gave up seven runs in five innings, surrendering four of the five Twins home runs on the day. Newly-minted leadoff hitter Joey Gallo had a home run and four driven in, Alex Kiriloff left the yard twice, Carlos Correa had a home run and three driven in, and Jorge Polanco added a two-run shot as the Twins trounced the Cubs, 11-1.
Texas Rangers (24-15) 5, Oakland Athletics (9-32) 0
Jon Gray logged one of the best starts of his Rangers career, with eight scoreless innings allowing just five baserunners against five strikeouts. Nathaniel Lowe went 2-for-4 with a home run and pair driven in while Ezequiel Duran put the cherry on top of the victory with a two-run blast in the ninth. The 5-0 lead extended the Rangers’ lead atop the division while also ensuring that the hapless A’s will have to wait beyond the quarter mark of the season to secure their tenth win.
St. Louis Cardinals (15-25) 4, Boston Red Sox (22-18) 3
The last-place Cardinals did the Yankees a huge solid, scoring three in the ninth to sink the Red Sox to the floor of the AL East. We got a rare glimpse of vintage Chris Sale, who went eight innings giving up a run against nine strikeouts, but Kenley Jansen blew the save walking the first two batters of the inning before surrendering an RBI double to Nolan Gorman. The real damage was done on an errant Kiké Hernández throw that allowed a pair to score as the Cardinals stumbled their way into a 4-3 victory.
Los Angeles Angels (21-19) 6, Cleveland Guardians (18-21) 8
Stop me if you’ve heard this before, but the Angels were well on track to claim victory until they had to use their bullpen. Former first overall pick Mickey Moniak celebrated his first call-up this year with a 3-for-4 day that included a home run. However, with a 6-2 lead in the eighth, LA reliever Andrew Wantz gave up four straight singles before being replaced by Ryan Tepera, who promptly served up a three-run bomb to Josh Naylor and solo shot to Andrés Giménez to wipe away his team’s lead.
