One year after rallying past the Red Sox to win an AL Wild Card Series, the New York Yankees battered Boston.
asserted
Yankees → rally → Boston
Max Fried dominated the Red Sox in the playoffs for the second straight year, Cody Bellinger and Luis García Jr. homered, and the Yankees rolled to a 9-2 win Wednesday night that completed a two-game sweep.
asserted
that → dominate → sweep
“We enjoyed tonight.
asserted
We → enjoy → tonight
We got a lot more work to do,” Bellinger said.
asserted
Bellinger → got → work
New York will face AL East champion Tampa Bay in an AL Division Series starting Saturday.
asserted
York → face → Series
We got a young, hungry team here,” Yankees captain Aaron Judge said as teammates sprayed him with bubbly during the clubhouse celebration.
asserted
teammates → got → celebration
“This makes me feel young every single time.”
asserted
me → make → ?
Judge missed this series because of a calf injury and isn’t sure whether he will play against the Rays, who beat New York 7-6 in the season series.
asserted
who → miss → series
“Saturday’s a long ways away,” he said.
asserted
he → ’ → ?
Clinging to a 2-1 lead after Willson Contreras homered to end Boston’s 26-inning postseason scoreless streak, the Yankees broke open the game with a six-run sixth after Spencer Jones reached on a wild pitch while striking out leading off — with the help of a video review.
asserted
Jones → cling → review
García, acquired at the trade deadline, had three hits in his first postseason start, and Bellinger had four RBIs that included a three-run homer capping the sixth-inning burst that put New York ahead 8-1.
asserted
that → acquire → York
“Step one,” said Bellinger, who caught the ceremonial first pitch from his dad, Clay, a 2000 Yankees World Series champion.
asserted
who → say → dad
“Now we got to go into Tampa and play against a tough team.”
asserted
we → got → team
Boston, which reached the playoffs after rebounding from a 32-46 start, lost last year’s wild-card matchup after defeating the Yankees in the opener.
asserted
which → reach → opener
“Regardless of all the special things that happened this summer, and there was quite a few, the goal is to win the World Series and that ended for us tonight, so it’s frustrating,” Red Sox manager Chad Tracy said.
asserted
Tracy → happen → us
“There’s a lot of things you can say, but in the moment right now, I think the guys only care that we lost.
asserted
we → ’ → moment
And it’s going to take some time to get over that.”
asserted
it → go → that
Boston, which also got a seventh-inning homer from Nick Sogard off Will Warren, was missing leadoff hitter Roman Anthony because of a hand injury.
asserted
which → get → injury
The Red Sox were held to a .117 average in the series (7 for 60) with 18 strikeouts and outscored 18-2.
asserted
Sox → hold → strikeouts
New York hit .382 in the series.
asserted
York → hit → series
Boston’s bullpen had a 20.25 ERA.
asserted
bullpen → have → ERA
“We played great baseball in a lot of ways here, obviously anchored by our two great starters,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said.
asserted
Boone → play → starters
Yankees batters hit .450 (9 for 20) with runners in scoring position after finishing 19th among the 30 teams with a .246 RISP during the regular season.
“I feel like it’s a whole new level from regular season to these last two days,” Austin Wells said.
asserted
Wells → hit → days
A day after Cam Schlittler led New York to a 9-0 win, Fried pitched three-hit ball over six innings to win a postseason game for the first time since the 2021 World Series clincher with Atlanta.
asserted
Fried → lead → Atlanta
New York started eight left-handed hitters against Sonny Gray, back on the mound where his career derailed during a dismal Yankees stretch in 2017 and ’18.
asserted
career → start → 18
García’s fourth-inning homer put the Yankees ahead and Bellinger, one of the top lefty-on-lefty hitters in the major leagues, added a fifth-inning RBI single against left-handed Erik Miller, who had just relieved.
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who → put → Miller
Gray was disappointed he wasn’t allowed to face Bellinger.
asserted
he → disappoint → Bellinger
“I think I’m the best pitcher in the American League going through the order a third time.
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I → think → order
I think that’s a fact,” Gray said.
asserted
Gray → think → ?
“I would’ve liked to live or die with me in that moment, but that’s the competitor I am.
asserted
I → like → moment
And, yeah, I think you can probably ask the guys and they felt the same way.
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they → think → guys
So I felt strong.
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I → feel → ?
I felt confident.
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I → feel → ?
I felt convicted.
asserted
I → feel → ?
”
Jones struck out both to start and end the bottom of the sixth, a weird half-inning that included a wild pitch, throwing error, stolen base, bunt single and intentional walk to Ben Rice that preceded Bellinger’s homer.
asserted
that → strike → homer
“I can’t believe they were willing to face a guy like Belli with men on base there,” Rice said.
asserted
Rice → believe → base
Garrett Crochet, who beat the Yankees in last year’s Wild Card Series opener, hadn’t pitched since April 25 because of left shoulder inflammation when he bounced a sweeper off Adley Rutschman’s chest.
asserted
he → beat → chest
The catcher picked up the ball and threw to first, where umpire John Libka signaled that Jones was out.
asserted
Jones → pick → first
The Yankees appealed and the call was reversed by the video umpire at the commissioner’s office.
asserted
call → appeal → office
“I couldn’t believe he was there,” Boone said.
asserted
Boone → believe → ?
…and 13 more, not listed.
The Aporia
