Yankees win 4-2 over Boston

Unlike yesterday’s game, which saw an explosion in the first inning, today’s first inning was a bit different. Severino had his way with Boston early on, as he struck out two batters in a row to close out the first frame.

In the second, all was well until Alex Verdugo went up to the plate. With a man on first, he hit a homer off of Severino’s 20th pitch, deep into right field. After a relatively calm start to the game, Alex Verdugo broke the silence. He extended his RBI-streak to two straight games with a two-run homer at the top of the second inning. As opposed to hitting a single, Verdugo decided to go yard off of Severino this time. The 25-year old has certainly flashed some potential early on in the season so far. Severino had to win a 12-pitch battle, and make a play in the field, in order to close out Boston for the final out.

Xander Boaegarts made a solid play in the field, reaching low for a ground ball and getting Stanton to ground out, to open up the second inning. Pivetta then went up the ladder with a four-seam fastball, to get D.J. Lemahieu for the second out. After Gallo smoked a ball to right field that hit the warning track, Pivetta got some more help from his defense, and Boston was able to get Gallo out at second. Gallo hit it so hard that it was almost an easier play for the outfielder to make. Yankee stadium’s right field is also very short, so both of those factors were not in Gallo’s favor. Even though the Yankees remained trailing 2-0, heading into the third inning, they finally showed some signs of life for the first time.

With three strikeouts in the third, Severino took control of the inning. Despite a runner in scoring position for two of those, and a dangerously full count, Severino had a huge inning and made the most of a massive opportunity. While Pivetta, behind Boston’s solid defense, was cruising through three innings, Severino found himself backed up against a wall multiple times. Pivetta had just two less strikeouts, three less hits, and two less earned runs than Severino did. While Severino may have had a mistake or two more than Pivetta, he still had a strong showing, especially for someone with the injury history that he does. It’s awesome just to see him on the mound, hitting five strikeouts, and dealing pitches that are 98+ mph. He topped out at 100.3 mph in a solid showing, before bowing out as Ron Marinaccio stepped in for his debut.

After looking a little nervous, Rizzo noticed the young, long-time Yankee fan wasn’t pitching right. He took a mound visit in a veteran move, as if he was telling Marinaccio “you’ve got this.” It clearly worked, as the young pitcher from Toms River, NJ, then dealt a beautiful slider. He ended up striking out that batter, and settled in a bit more at the mound. A wonderful defensive play by New York obtained the second out, Marinaccio struck out Vasquez next, which finished off an incredible first inning for him.

The Yankees pitching staff has been phenomenal for the most part, but with just one two hit through four innings, their offense hasn’t been able to produce enough on the other end. A leadoff single in the bottom of the fourth for Donaldson gave them some momentum, and then Judge got robbed by Hernandez at dead center. Donaldson was able to tag and advance to scoring position, but the Yankees were inches away from tying the game up. Either way, Anthony Rizzo decided to put matters into his own hands, and he hit his first homer of the season to tie up the ball game. Fans knew it was coming, and it was only a matter of time before the Yankees broke through. Devers made a highlight-worthy play also at third base, after he corralled in a rocket, before throwing the runner out at first. After an exciting fourth inning, both teams couldn’t get on the scoreboard until the sixth inning. Stanton hit a two-run homer, to give the Yankees a 4-2 lead in the bottom of the sixth inning, which ended up being the winning runs of today’s game.

In the bottom of the seventh, Verdugo continued to cement his status as one of Boston’s best fielders. He layed out for another diving catch, to snag the second out, for another impressive defensive play this series. Even though it has only been a few games, Verdugo is proving to be an asset both offensively and defensively.

Boston’s offensive woes followed them through the ninth inning, and they were in a tight spot facing Aroldis Chapman. With no men on base and down two runs, Boston had an uphill battle, and a strikeout to kick things off didn’t help either. But, the game wasn’t over just yet. An error from New York gave Boston a man in scoring position, but Boston grounded out to Kiner-Falefa, who was able to make up for that error earlier on in the inning. After having their backs against the wall for most of the first game, New York was able to take care of business, and they maintained control after gaining a lead in the sixth inning. New York’s record is now a perfect 2-0 for the season, and they play again tomorrow night at 7:00 EST.