HomeSportsMLB Playoffs 2024: Yankees Win Game 1 vs. Royals despite mediocre performances...

MLB Playoffs 2024: Yankees Win Game 1 vs. Royals despite mediocre performances from Aaron Judge and Gerrit Cole

NEW YORK – Gerrit Cole was shaky. Aaron Judge did nothing. The Yankees won anyway.

In front of a sold-out home crowd, under an avalanche of supersonic anticipation, the Bronx Bombers opened their 2024 postseason journey with a scrappy, high-energy comeback win over the upstart Kansas City Royals in Game 1 of the ALDS.

Much-maligned outfielder Alex Verdugo provided the final blow in New York’s 6-5 victory on Saturday, cutting a two-out RBI knock in the seventh to give New York a lead it would not relinquish. . Upon reaching second base, a triumphant Verdugo threw his hands in the air and made a shouting motion to his jubilant teammates.

Yankee Stadium roared with delight, 45,000 souls celebrating the man who was booed into oblivion by many die-hards during Verdugo’s summer of offensive ineptitude.

In an instant, all was forgiven – or at least forgotten. The effect was the same.

“This is his moment,” third baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. said. to Yahoo Sports about Verdugo. “This is when he does his shit. He’s been doing it all his life: played in LA, played in Boston. This is what he does.”

Verdugo was acquired in a trade with the rival Red Sox last winter and struggled with the bat during his first year in the Bronx. Excellent defense in Yankee Stadium’s spacious left field kept his profile up, but the endearingly aloof, left-handed slugger underperformed at the plate. Those struggles drew the ire of Yankees fans desperate to see top prospect Jasson Dominguez take over Verdugo as the everyday left fielder.

See also  Fantasy Football Week 8 Rankings: Flex (Full PPR)

Dominguez’s call-up in September felt like an audition of sorts. Perhaps a few hot weeks from the 21-year-old rookie would see him supplant Verdugo in the playoffs.

Instead, Dominguez struggled while Verdugo showed signs of life. That only strengthened the resolve of Yankees skipper Aaron Boone, who despite everything never lost confidence in Verdugo. A few days ago, Boone informed the 28-year-old that he would be the choice in left field for the club’s first playoff game.

Offered Boone: “He’s a good all-around player, and it’s not always about what you did – it’s about what you can do in the future.”

On Saturday, under the sport’s brightest lights, Verdugo paid his manager back.

“He’s going to trust me.” Verdugo said. “And I just wanted to give that back to him, like, ‘Hey man, I got you.'”

Boone’s immense, unwavering faith in his players is perhaps his most defining trait as a manager. There isn’t a louder fan base in sports. Boone is a master at blocking out the noise and sticking to his guns. Sometimes that loyalty comes back and burns – Josh Donaldson and Aaron Hicks are two obvious examples – but it also fosters a sense of loyalty among his players that is hard to ignore.

See also  The Red Wings have reduced the roster to 23 and are officially in compliance with the salary cap

“He’s had moments like that,” Chisholm said of Boone. “He was a Yankee. He knows how hard it is.”

And on Saturday, the Yankees made it look pretty tough on Saturday.

Judge, the presumptive American League MVP, went 0-for-4 with a walk and three strikeouts. Two of his punchouts came with two runners on base. The Yankees captain swung and missed seven times that night, his third-highest total in a single game this year. It’s been a rough start for Judge, who is still looking for his first World Series appearance in his seventh postseason.

Starting pitcher Gerrit Cole, who finished the regular season with just one run in his final 15 2/3 innings, looked shaky from the first pitch. Kansas City leadoff man Michael Massey skied the first offering of the game to the warning track in left field. If there hadn’t been a steady wind toward home plate, the ball might have ended up in the seats. Instead, it found safety in Juan Soto’s glove.

In total, Cole surrendered four runs (three earned) in five tough innings. The Royals, who scored just three runs in 18 innings in their wild-card victory over Baltimore, had seven hits on the reigning AL Cy Young. Cole left in the sixth inning after his former teammate, 40-year-old first baseman Yuli Gurriel, hit a laser beam single against the left field wall. Gurriel’s hit would have been a home run at six MLB stadiums, including his and Cole’s old stadium in Houston.

See also  2024-25 NBA Season Preview: Team Outlook, Schedules, Fantasy Analysis and Power Rankings

Gurriel would come around to score, helped immensely by Anthony Volpe’s throwing error on a potential double play. But then New York’s bullpen took care of the boil, leaving the Royals scoreless through the final three frames of the game.

Yankees closer Luke Weaver collected the final four outs in exciting fashion. The rangy right-hander eliminated Maikel Garcia to finish eighth before eliminating the top three in the Kansas City order in a 1-2-3 ninth. A coin-flip strike-three call on Royals dynamo Bobby Witt Jr. for number 2 sent the home crowd into a frenzy and Witt into a fit of frustration. Weaver caused first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino to meekly roll to first to end it.

For New York, the action was far from final. Juan Soto (three goals) was the only star who lived up to the bill. The Yankees let the Royals get back into the ballgame several times. There were defensive errors and baserunning blunders. Flaws remain; superior opponents await.

But when the first notes of Sinatra’s “New York, New York” sounded from the stadium speaker at 10:01 p.m. local time, the Yankees were 1-0.

For now, that’s all that matters.

- Advertisement -
RELATED ARTICLES

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here

Most Popular

Recent Comments