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Tag: Gerrit Cole

  • Dodgers win World Series in 5 games, overcome 5-run deficit with help of errors to beat Yankees 7-6

    Dodgers win World Series in 5 games, overcome 5-run deficit with help of errors to beat Yankees 7-6

    The Los Angeles Dodgers won their second World Series championship in five seasons, overcoming a five-run deficit with the help of three Yankees defensive miscues and rallying on sacrifice flies from Gavin Lux and Mookie Betts in the eighth inning to beat New York 7-6 in Game 5 on Wednesday night.Aaron Judge and Jazz Chisholm Jr. hit back-to-back home runs in the first inning, Alex Verdugo’s RBI single chased Jack Flaherty in the second, and Giancarlo Stanton’s third-inning homer against Ryan Brasier built a 5-0 Yankees lead.But errors by Judge in center and Anthony Volpe at shortstop, combined with pitcher Gerrit Cole failing to cover first on Betts’ grounder, helped Los Angeles score five unearned runs in the fifth.After Stanton’s sixth-inning sacrifice fly put the Yankees back ahead 6-5, the Dodgers loaded the bases against loser Tommy Kahnle in the eighth before the sacrifice flies off Luke Weaver.Judge doubled off winner Blake Treinen with one out in the bottom half and Chisholm walked. Manager Dave Roberts walked to the mound with Treinen at 37 pitches.“I looked in his eyes. I said how you feeling? How much more you got?” Roberts recalled. “He said: `I want it.’ I trust him.”Treinen retired Stanton on a flyout and struck out Anthony Rizzo.Walker Buehler, making his first relief appearance since his rookie season in 2018, pitched a perfect ninth for his first major league save.“We’re obviously resilient, but there’s so much love in the clubhouse that won this game today,” Betts said. “That’s what it was. It was love, it was grit. I mean, it was just a beautiful thing. I’m just proud of us and I’m happy for us.”When Buehler struck out Verdugo to end the game, the Dodgers poured onto the field to celebrate between the mound and first base, capping a season in which they won 98 games and finished with the best regular-season record.With several thousand Dodgers fans remaining in a mostly empty stadium, baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred presented the trophy on a platform quickly erected over second base.“There’s just a lot of ways we can win baseball games,” Buehler said. “Obviously the superstars we have on our team and the discipline, it just kind of all adds up.”Shohei Ohtani, the Dodgers’ record-setting $700 million signing and baseball’s first 50-homer, 50-steal player, went 2 for 19 with no RBIs and had one single after separating his shoulder during a stolen base attempt in Game 2.Freddie Freeman hit a two-run single to tie the Series record of 12 RBIs, set by Bobby Richardson over seven games in 1960, and was voted Series MVP. With the Dodgers one out from losing Friday’s opener, Freeman hit a game-ending grand slam reminiscent of Kirk Gibson’s homer off Oakland’s Dennis Eckersley in 1988’s Game 1 that sparked Los Angeles to the title.The Dodgers earned their eighth championship and seventh since leaving Brooklyn for Los Angeles — their first in a non-shortened season since 1988. They won a neutral-site World Series against Tampa Bay in 2020 after a 60-game regular season and couldn’t have a parade because of the coronavirus pandemic.These Dodgers of Ohtani, Freeman & Betts joined the 1955 Duke Snider and Roy Campanella Boys of Summer, the Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale era that spanned the three titles from 1959-65, the Tommy Lasorda-led groups 1981 and ’88 and the Betts and Clayton Kershaw champions of 2020.Roberts won his second championship in nine seasons as manager as the Dodgers, matching Lasorda and trailing the four of Walter Alston. The Dodgers won for the fourth time in 12 Series meetings with the Yankees.New York remained without a title since winning its record 27th in 2009. The Yankees acquired Juan Soto from San Diego in December knowing he would be eligible for free agency after the 2024 Series. The 26-year-old star went 5 for 16 one RBI in the Series heading into what will be intensely followed bidding on the open market.Judge finished 4 for 18 with three RBIs.Cole didn’t allow a hit until Kiké Hernández singled leading off the fifth. Judge, who an inning earlier made a leaping catch at the wall to deny Freeman an extra-base hit, dropped Tommy Edman’s fly to center. Shortstop Anthony Volpe then bounced a throw to third on Will Smith’s grounder, allowing the Dodgers to load the bases with no outs.Cole struck out Lux and Ohtani, and Betts hit a grounder to Rizzo. Cole didn’t cover first, pointing at Rizzo to run to the bag as Betts outraced the first baseman.Freeman followed with a two-run single and Teoscar Hernández hit a tying two-run double. Max Muncy walked before Kiké Hernández grounded into a forceout on Cole’s 48th pitch of the inning.“We just take advantage of every mistake they made in that inning,” Teoscar Hernández said. “We put some good at-bats together. We put the ball in play.”Stanton’s sixth-inning sacrifice fly off Brusdar Graterol put the Yankees ahead 6-5, but the Dodgers rallied one last time in the eighth.Kiké Hernández singled off Tommy Kahnle leading off. Edman followed with an infield hit and Smith walked on four pitches. Lux’s sacrifice fly off Luke Weaver tied the score. Ohtani reached on catcher’s interference and Betts followed with another sacrifice fly to give the Dodgers their first lead.Purchased by Guggenheim Baseball Management in 2012, the Dodgers hired Andrew Friedman from Tampa Bay to head their baseball operations two years later. He boosted the front office with a multitude of analytics and performance science staff, and ownership supplied the cash.Los Angeles went on an unprecedented $1.25 billion spending spree last offseason on deals with Ohtani, pitchers Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tyler Glasnow and James Paxton, and outfielder Teoscar Hernández. Much of the money was future obligations that raised the Dodgers’ deferred compensation to $915.5 million owed from 2028-44.Faced with injuries, the Dodgers acquired Flaherty, Edman and reliever Michael Kopech ahead of the trade deadline, and all became important cogs in the title run. The additions boosted payroll to $266 million, third behind the Mets and the Yankees, plus a projected $43 million luxury tax.

    NEW YORK —

    The Los Angeles Dodgers won their second World Series championship in five seasons, overcoming a five-run deficit with the help of three Yankees defensive miscues and rallying on sacrifice flies from Gavin Lux and Mookie Betts in the eighth inning to beat New York 7-6 in Game 5 on Wednesday night.

    Aaron Judge and Jazz Chisholm Jr. hit back-to-back home runs in the first inning, Alex Verdugo’s RBI single chased Jack Flaherty in the second, and Giancarlo Stanton’s third-inning homer against Ryan Brasier built a 5-0 Yankees lead.

    But errors by Judge in center and Anthony Volpe at shortstop, combined with pitcher Gerrit Cole failing to cover first on Betts’ grounder, helped Los Angeles score five unearned runs in the fifth.

    After Stanton’s sixth-inning sacrifice fly put the Yankees back ahead 6-5, the Dodgers loaded the bases against loser Tommy Kahnle in the eighth before the sacrifice flies off Luke Weaver.

    Judge doubled off winner Blake Treinen with one out in the bottom half and Chisholm walked. Manager Dave Roberts walked to the mound with Treinen at 37 pitches.

    “I looked in his eyes. I said how you feeling? How much more you got?” Roberts recalled. “He said: `I want it.’ I trust him.”

    Treinen retired Stanton on a flyout and struck out Anthony Rizzo.

    Walker Buehler, making his first relief appearance since his rookie season in 2018, pitched a perfect ninth for his first major league save.

    “We’re obviously resilient, but there’s so much love in the clubhouse that won this game today,” Betts said. “That’s what it was. It was love, it was grit. I mean, it was just a beautiful thing. I’m just proud of us and I’m happy for us.”

    When Buehler struck out Verdugo to end the game, the Dodgers poured onto the field to celebrate between the mound and first base, capping a season in which they won 98 games and finished with the best regular-season record.

    With several thousand Dodgers fans remaining in a mostly empty stadium, baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred presented the trophy on a platform quickly erected over second base.

    “There’s just a lot of ways we can win baseball games,” Buehler said. “Obviously the superstars we have on our team and the discipline, it just kind of all adds up.”

    Shohei Ohtani, the Dodgers’ record-setting $700 million signing and baseball’s first 50-homer, 50-steal player, went 2 for 19 with no RBIs and had one single after separating his shoulder during a stolen base attempt in Game 2.

    Freddie Freeman hit a two-run single to tie the Series record of 12 RBIs, set by Bobby Richardson over seven games in 1960, and was voted Series MVP. With the Dodgers one out from losing Friday’s opener, Freeman hit a game-ending grand slam reminiscent of Kirk Gibson’s homer off Oakland’s Dennis Eckersley in 1988’s Game 1 that sparked Los Angeles to the title.

    The Dodgers earned their eighth championship and seventh since leaving Brooklyn for Los Angeles — their first in a non-shortened season since 1988. They won a neutral-site World Series against Tampa Bay in 2020 after a 60-game regular season and couldn’t have a parade because of the coronavirus pandemic.

    These Dodgers of Ohtani, Freeman & Betts joined the 1955 Duke Snider and Roy Campanella Boys of Summer, the Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale era that spanned the three titles from 1959-65, the Tommy Lasorda-led groups 1981 and ’88 and the Betts and Clayton Kershaw champions of 2020.

    Roberts won his second championship in nine seasons as manager as the Dodgers, matching Lasorda and trailing the four of Walter Alston. The Dodgers won for the fourth time in 12 Series meetings with the Yankees.

    New York remained without a title since winning its record 27th in 2009. The Yankees acquired Juan Soto from San Diego in December knowing he would be eligible for free agency after the 2024 Series. The 26-year-old star went 5 for 16 one RBI in the Series heading into what will be intensely followed bidding on the open market.

    Judge finished 4 for 18 with three RBIs.

    Cole didn’t allow a hit until Kiké Hernández singled leading off the fifth. Judge, who an inning earlier made a leaping catch at the wall to deny Freeman an extra-base hit, dropped Tommy Edman’s fly to center. Shortstop Anthony Volpe then bounced a throw to third on Will Smith’s grounder, allowing the Dodgers to load the bases with no outs.

    Cole struck out Lux and Ohtani, and Betts hit a grounder to Rizzo. Cole didn’t cover first, pointing at Rizzo to run to the bag as Betts outraced the first baseman.

    Freeman followed with a two-run single and Teoscar Hernández hit a tying two-run double. Max Muncy walked before Kiké Hernández grounded into a forceout on Cole’s 48th pitch of the inning.

    “We just take advantage of every mistake they made in that inning,” Teoscar Hernández said. “We put some good at-bats together. We put the ball in play.”

    Stanton’s sixth-inning sacrifice fly off Brusdar Graterol put the Yankees ahead 6-5, but the Dodgers rallied one last time in the eighth.

    Kiké Hernández singled off Tommy Kahnle leading off. Edman followed with an infield hit and Smith walked on four pitches. Lux’s sacrifice fly off Luke Weaver tied the score. Ohtani reached on catcher’s interference and Betts followed with another sacrifice fly to give the Dodgers their first lead.

    Purchased by Guggenheim Baseball Management in 2012, the Dodgers hired Andrew Friedman from Tampa Bay to head their baseball operations two years later. He boosted the front office with a multitude of analytics and performance science staff, and ownership supplied the cash.

    Los Angeles went on an unprecedented $1.25 billion spending spree last offseason on deals with Ohtani, pitchers Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tyler Glasnow and James Paxton, and outfielder Teoscar Hernández. Much of the money was future obligations that raised the Dodgers’ deferred compensation to $915.5 million owed from 2028-44.

    Faced with injuries, the Dodgers acquired Flaherty, Edman and reliever Michael Kopech ahead of the trade deadline, and all became important cogs in the title run. The additions boosted payroll to $266 million, third behind the Mets and the Yankees, plus a projected $43 million luxury tax.

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  • New York Yankees’ offense explodes against Los Angeles Dodgers in World Series Game 4 to stave off elimination

    New York Yankees’ offense explodes against Los Angeles Dodgers in World Series Game 4 to stave off elimination

    (CNN) — The New York Yankees’ offense exploded Tuesday night after struggling through the first three games of the World Series, using three home runs to stave off elimination at Yankee Stadium.

    The Yankees beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 11-4 in Game 4, spoiling a historic night for Los Angeles Dodgers’ first baseman Freddie Freeman. The Bronx Bombers’ 11 runs were more than the team had scored in the prior three contests combined.

    Down 2-1 in the third inning, Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe, a New York native playing for his childhood team, hit a go-ahead grand slam off Daniel Hudson that made the score 5-2. It was a lead the Yankees wouldn’t give up.

    After the game, Volpe was asked about the grand slam.

    “I think I pretty much blacked out as soon as I saw it go over the fence. We just want to keep putting pressure on them and I think everyone had confidence in everyone in the lineup that someone was going to get the big hit,” Volpe said.

    “We’ve been having such good at-bats and putting such good swings on the ball, that we just felt like it was only a matter of time.”

    Yankees manager Aaron Boone said he was happy for the fans following Volpe’s slam.

    “I was just glad because it felt like the fans were so ready to erupt last night, and we just got behind and couldn’t punch things in. It’s like you finally got to see the top blow off Yankee Stadium in a World Series game,” Boone told reporters.

    “When Anthony hits that ball, it was like fun to see Yankee Stadium erupt. It’s like they’ve been waiting for 48 hours to do that. Then just the way the game went on and on, it was just the energy, the noise, the excitement. It was Yankee Stadium World Series game.”

    The Dodgers now lead the series three games to one. Los Angeles has another opportunity to clinch the franchise’s eighth championship on Wednesday when the two teams play Game 5 in New York.

    Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said the team will be ready.

    “I think that they beat us. Volpe took a good swing. They took advantage of a couple free passes. They tacked on later,” Roberts said afterwards. “I think we could have done some things to get in their pen a little bit earlier.

    “Again, at the end of the day, we’re still in a pretty good spot, and we feel good. We’ll be ready to go tomorrow.”

    The contest started off promisingly for the visitors when Freeman continued his hot World Series run.

    The first baseman set a World Series record after homering in his sixth consecutive Fall Classic game. Freeman hit a two-run homer off Yankees starter Luis Gil in the first inning to give the Dodgers an early 2-0 lead. He finished 1-4 with three RBI.

    Freeman homered in Games 5 and 6 as a member of the 2021 World Series champion Atlanta Braves against the Houston Astros. On Monday, he tied Astros outfielder George Springer as the only players to hit a homer in five straight games.

    The 35-year-old is the first player to homer and have at least 10 RBIs in the first four games of a World Series.

    The Dodgers would score two in the fifth to cut the deficit to 5-4, whittling down the lead provided by Volpe’s slam. But in the sixth, Yankees catcher Austin Wells connected on a solo homer to extend New York’s lead to 6-4.

    In the bottom of the eighth, Volpe once again provided the heroics – this time with his speed. He turned a single into a double with his wheels before stealing third base. When left fielder Alex Verdugo hit a sharp ground ball to second base, Volpe sprinted for home and his head first slide beat the tag from catcher Will Smith to make the game 7-4.

    One batter later, Yankees second baseman Gleyber Torres put the exclamation mark on the game with a three-run home run, scoring Wells – who had walked – and Verdugo to make the score 10-4.

    But New York wasn’t done yet. Right fielder Juan Soto continued his solid series with a double following Torres’ homer and center fielder Aaron Judge – who has struggled mightily this series – drove him in with a hard base hit to the left field.

    The offensive breakout provides hope for Yankees’ fans in one of the most highly anticipated editions of the Fall Classic in recent years between two of the sport’s most legendary franchises.

    Wednesday, New York’s top starting pitcher, Gerrit Cole, will take the mound while Jack Flaherty, who pitched a stellar game for the Dodgers in Game 1, is in line to toe the rubber again.

    Wayne Sterling and CNN

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  • Yankees Pick Up Team Option For Luis Severino, Potentially Setting Him Up For A Bigger Contract

    Yankees Pick Up Team Option For Luis Severino, Potentially Setting Him Up For A Bigger Contract

    Perhaps the clearest thing to emerge from Brian Cashman’s lengthy state of the Yankees press conference on Friday concerned the status of Luis Severino.

    During his roughly 45 minutes at the podium in the basement of Yankee Stadium and approximately 22 hours before the Astros clinched their second World Series title, Cashman gave his clearest answer when it came to status of Luis Severino, describing his status on the team “as an easy yes”.

    “He’s been a really impactful pitcher, so the answer to that would be an easy yes,” Cashman said.

    A little over 68 hours later, came word that the “easy yes” became official when the Yankees announced they were picking up the one-year, $15 million team option for Severino on Monday, hours before Angels GM Perry Minasian said he was not trading Shohei Ohtani, who has one year left before entering free agency.

    The option is part of the four-year, $40 million contract signed by Severino in spring training 2019. At the time, he signed on the dotted line, Severino made a little over $600,000 and was coming off a spectacular 19-win season, resulting in a 10th-place finish in the AL Cy Young race won by Blake Snell.

    At the time of the new deal, it was believed Severino was setting himself to cash in free agency. The original portion of the deal deal would take him through his age-28 season and the option would conclude his age-29 season, the same age Gerrit Cole was when he signed a nine-year, $324 million deal with the Yankees.

    Instead injuries constantly interfered, setting up the final year of the team-friendly deal as a second straight “prove it season” for Severino.

    Before pitching well enough to get his team option picked up, Severino strained a latissimus dorsi muscle and did not make his 2019 debut until Sept. 17. He then had Tommy John surgery Feb. 27, 2020 – two weeks before the season was delayed and ultimately sliced to 60 games in two-plus months due to the COVID-19 pandemic – and then did not return from the surgery until returning on Sept. 21, 2021 for four relief appearances

    At the moment 27 starting pitchers are scheduled to make at least $15 million in 2023, a list that includes Justin Verlander, who may not exercise his player option for next season after helping Houston win the World Series by winning Game 5.

    In the 99-win regular season, Severino did his part by going 7-3 with a 3.18 ERA in 19 starts, with 112 strikeouts against 30 walks in 102 innings. He also held hitters to a slash line of .196/.263/.353 in those starts and highlighted his success by pitching seven innings of a combined one-hitter against Detroit on June 4 along with also becoming the first pitcher to strike Toronto slugger Vladimir Guerrero Jr. three times in his second start on April 14.

    Seventeen of those starts were before he sustained right shoulder tightness on July 13 when he allowed three homers on three different pitches in two innings against the Cincinnati Reds.

    It took Severino over two months to return, though not by his design. While he understood the Yankee point of view, he was hardly thrilled with being moved to the 60-day injured list on Aug. 1 after throwing from flat ground in the previous two weeks.

    “I was not happy. I was not expecting that,” Severino said the day before the Yankees acquired Frankie Montas from Oakland and traded Jordan Montgomery to St. Louis. “If that’s the plan they have for me to come back healthy, I have to just follow the plan.”

    Perhaps as meaningful as his base statistics was performance of his three main pitches, the four-seam fastball, changeup and the slider.

    Hitters batted .186 and saw 780 four-seamers as Severino averaged 96.3 mph on the pitch. Severino. Severino threw his changeup 363 times and hitters batted .235 as it averaged 88.8. Against the slider, Severino threw the pitch 342 times, held hitters to a .169 average and averaged 85.2 mph.

    The velocity numbers are down from 2018 when he averaged 97.6 on 1,589 four-seamers, 88.1 mph on 1,132 sliders and 88.1 mph on 427 changeups while facing 780 hitters in 191 1/3 innings.

    Last year’s performance showed Severino could pitch as effectively as he did during 2017 and 2018 when he recorded 33 of his 50 career wins. If Severino pitches as well as he did for most of last season and does it for a full season, he could set himself for an even nicer payday and another key free agent decision for the Yankees.

    Larry Fleisher, Contributor

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  • Judge, slumping Yankees on the brink after getting blanked

    Judge, slumping Yankees on the brink after getting blanked

    NEW YORK — Back home for a must-win game, Aaron Judge and the New York Yankees generated more boos than base hits.

    One more punchless performance and their season is over.

    Handcuffed again by Cristian Javier and Houston’s stingy pitching staff, the power-packed Yankees went down meekly Saturday on three harmless hits in a 5-0 defeat that left them on the brink of a four-game sweep by the Astros in the AL Championship Series.

    “Our backs are against the wall now,” first baseman Anthony Rizzo said in a quiet Yankees clubhouse. “Collectively, we’ve just got to do a better job of putting pressure on them.”

    New York must find a way to bust out of its playoff slump Sunday night in Game 4 and beyond, or it will be 13 years and counting without a World Series appearance.

    That’s a long time in the storied annals of baseball’s most successful franchise. But the only hope remaining for these $254 million Yankees is an improbable rally that would make them just the second team in major league history to overcome a 3-0 deficit in a best-of-seven postseason series.

    Boston accomplished the feat in the 2004 ALCS against the rival Yankees on the way to winning its first World Series championship in 86 years.

    Right now, though, New York would welcome something as simple as a clutch single — because the Astros are Yankees kryptonite.

    “I think they’ve attacked the zone,” Yankees third baseman Josh Donaldson said. “They have good stuff. They have good arms over there. Can’t take anything away from those guys, but we just need to be better.”

    After totaling just four runs during two losses in Houston to begin the series, New York’s normally potent lineup looked even more overmatched Saturday in providing zero support for ace Gerrit Cole.

    Judge, who set an American League record with 62 home runs during the regular season, went 0 for 4 with two strikeouts and never got the ball out of the infield. New York is batting .128 with 41 strikeouts in the series.

    This from a team that led the majors with 254 homers during the season and finished second in runs to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

    “I don’t think I’m perplexed about it. It’s just the nature of the game sometimes,” said outfielder Harrison Bader, who made a costly error when he nearly collided with Judge in right-center. “It’s a small sample size.”

    Giancarlo Stanton doubled on a 3-0 delivery with one out in the fourth inning — the first hit Javier had allowed in 167 pitches versus the Yankees this year. The 25-year-old righty threw seven innings and struck out 13 in a combined no-hitter by three Houston hurlers at Yankee Stadium on June 25.

    This series was supposed to be an entertaining clash between the American League’s preeminent powers, but the Yankees have been no match for Houston pitching.

    “They’re not really missing over the big part of the plate a lot,” Rizzo said.

    The playoff-proven Astros improved to 8-2 against New York this year, including October. They eliminated the Yankees from the postseason in 2015, 2017 and 2019, and are right on the cusp of doing it again.

    Yankees manager Aaron Boone has shuffled his lineup during the series in an attempt to get the offense going. Nothing has worked.

    “Obviously, frustrating day. It felt like we had some pitches there with Javier to do some things with and just fouled some pitches off. I thought there were some good at-bats sprinkled in there. But obviously just not able to mount enough,” Boone said. “We just need to get a little bit of a spark and something to bounce our way and try and grab a lead and play with it a little bit.”

    As the Astros paraded six pitchers to the mound, New York was in danger of being held to one hit for the first time in its 422-game postseason history before Matt Carpenter and Bader got consecutive singles with two outs in the ninth.

    Donaldson then struck out to end it, bringing the last round in a string of boos all day from the scattered fans who remained.

    “I think they were booing a lot tonight,” Donaldson said.

    ———

    More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb and https://twitter.com/AP—Sports

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  • New York Yankees Enjoy Surviving ALDS With An Eye Towards Getting Past The Houston Astros

    New York Yankees Enjoy Surviving ALDS With An Eye Towards Getting Past The Houston Astros

    The music was loud, the plastic covering was on the spacious carpeting, the champagne and Bud Light flowed from one player to another.

    In the hour after the Yankees completed the ALDS with their 5-1 win that seemed more like a formality once they took a three-run lead about 15 minutes in, it was a somewhat modest one on the celebration scale, especially compared to some of the others to take place by them and other teams.

    The celebration had all the usual components of winning a postseason series, but it was more a theme of taking care of business in a series that felt more like the extended nature of an NBA best-of-seven first round series.

    After eight days where there nearly were more days off than actual games, the Yankees won a pair of elimination games and enjoyed their first playoff series clincher at home since CC Sabathia’s 121-pitch complete game in Game 5 of the 2012 ALDS against Baltimore.

    Then they got ready to take their bus to the airport for their next order of business – a third ALCS against the Houston Astros.

    “If you’re stuck in the past, you’re not going to go anywhere,” said Aaron Judge, who was entering his final season at Fresno State when the Yankees escaped a tough five-game series with Baltimore. “I’m going to treat it like any other series. We’ll go there with our A game and take care of business.”

    The narrative of the Yankees against the Astros is finally here and whether it was the combination of not having a day off in between the ALDS and ALCS or the recent history, the celebration was more of a loud toast with an eye towards hopefully using the more expensive champagne such as winning a pennant or a World Series like they did exactly 44 years ago in Reggie Jackson’s three-homer game over the Dodgers.

    The celebration was also not like the 2001 version when the Yankees somberly clinched the AL East in their first home game following the Sept. 11 attacks on Sept. 25, 2001. It paled in comparison to ones as recently as Oct. 9 when the Padres toasted often with Brut 1818 Champagne after eliminating the Mets in Game 3 of the wild-card round in a game that was highlighted by Joe Musgrove’s futile ear check as he dominated the Mets and could hardly compete with the party going on footsteps from their large clubhouse under the elevated tracks on River Avenue.

    It had the touches of a raucous celebration, especially since you could hear someone yell “Who’s Your Daddy” in reference to the Josh Naylor celebration he displayed while connecting in Game 4 off ace Gerrit Cole, who was so locked in he hardly paid attention to it.

    “Yeah, whatever. It’s cute,” Cole said Sunday with the look of someone still locked in while speaking at the podium in Cleveland. “It wouldn’t have bothered me in the moment and it just is kind of funny.”

    Naylor’s celebration is officially called “Rock the Baby” and it annoyed Yankee fans when it was unveiled against Cole Sunday, the same way it irked White Sox fans in Chicago when he hit a grand slam earlier this season.

    By the time Tuesday afternoon arrived, fans were well-versed in this and yelled “Who’s Your Daddy” every time Naylor batted. And when Wandy Peralta (in his fifth straight game) recorded the final out, Gleyber Torres perhaps showed how the Yankees truly felt.

    Torres recorded the final putout when he completed the force play from Isiah Kiner-Falefa. Then after stepping on second base, Torres swung his arms back and forth four times while throwing a steely glare at Naylor in the Cleveland dugout although later on in a somber clubhouse the first baseman said he was honored at being recognized in the form of a chant.

    “We got our revenge. We’re happy to beat those guys. Now they can watch on TV the next series for us,” Torres said “It’s nothing personal. Just a little thing about revenge.”

    The Yankee celebration was modest with more talk about what lies next, Round 3 with the Houston Astros. The Astros won the first two rounds of the looming trilogy and as it became apparent what was on the horizon some fans could be heard chanting their favorite four-letter word before the name “Altuve.”

    Altuve ended the last meeting between the teams with his famous homer off Aroldis Chapman, who was following the ALDS win from his home base in Miami after being instructed to stay away by the Yankees. In the month after Altuve’s game-ending homer, the details of Houston’s cheating scandal emerged with details about what they did during the seven-game ALCS over the Yankees in 2017 when the home team won every game.

    Those revelations further fueled the fire and even in limited capacity due to the COVD-19 pandemic in May 2021 it was clearly evident.

    Full-capacity Astros-Yankees games returned in June when a combined 180,703 fans spent a portion of their weekend watching a compelling four-game series. Over the course of 13 hours, 28 minutes, the Yankees wound getting two wins on game-ending hits in games they did not lead, got no-hit (to the delight of some people there) and got dominated by Future Hall of Famer Justin Verlander.

    “We’ve seen each other a lot in years past in the postseason,” Judge said nearly four months ago. “Anytime we play, it’s always gonna be a good ballgame. I think the fans anticipate that and they bring their energy from the first pitch on. That’s what you love, you look forward to playing good teams, and seeing where you stack up in the AL.”

    Now after their somewhat subdued celebration, seeing where they stack up in the AL is here for the Yankees.

    “We know what we’re going up against,” Nestor Cortes said. “We’ve just going to battle it out. It’s going to be a tough series for both of us. Let the best team win.”

    Larry Fleisher, Contributor

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  • Cole, Yankees save season, beat Guards to force ALDS Game 5

    Cole, Yankees save season, beat Guards to force ALDS Game 5

    CLEVELAND — Gerrit Cole brought the Yankees back from the brink. They’re Bronx bound, still chasing a championship.

    Cole gave New York what it needed, seven solid innings and Harrison Bader hit a two-run homer as the Yankees saved their season and forced a decisive fifth game in the AL Division Series with a 4-2 win over the Cleveland Guardians in Game 4 on Sunday night.

    “This series certainly isn’t over, and we have bigger goals,” Cole said. “But I’m definitely having the time of my life and I love it and I can’t wait to keep going.”

    New York’s $324 million man, Cole allowed two runs and struck out eight in beating the Guardians for the second time in six days. He didn’t dominate, but Cole kept Cleveland’s hitters off base and off balance.

    Bader homered for the third time in the best-of-five series, connecting in the second inning off Cal Quantrill, who came in unbeaten in 44 games at Progressive Field.

    After blowing Game 3 on Saturday, when the Yankees’ bullpen had its greatest meltdown in the team’s storied postseason history, New York recovered and is headed home.

    New York will start Game 2 loser Jameson Taillon against Aaron Civale on Monday night at Yankee Stadium.

    The winner advances to meet Houston in the AL Championship Series.

    Josh Naylor homered for the Guardians, who are trying to end Major League Baseball’s current longest World Series drought in their first year after a franchise name change. Cleveland hasn’t won it all since 1948.

    With a history of postseason heartbreak, Cleveland teams are 1-7 in winner-take-all games.

    “You know if you would have told me back in March, we just signed up to play Game 5 in New York to go to the ALCS, I would have jogged to New York,” Guardians manager Terry Francona said. “I’m excited.”

    Cole was pulled after 110 pitches and Yankees manager Aaron Boone brought in closer Clay Holmes for the eighth. Holmes didn’t pitch in Game 3 after Boone decided to shut him down but didn’t tell the right-hander.

    Holmes struck out Amed Rosario and All-Star José Ramírez in the eighth before Wandy Peralta finished for the save. Working his third straight day, Peralta retired three batters on just seven pitches.

    “Our guys had that look in their eyes tonight, and it starts with Gerrit,” said first baseman Anthony Rizzo said. “It’s a complete win for us and that’s who we are and that’s the wins we need to have.”

    The Guardians weren’t supposed to be here. But they won the AL Central, swept Tampa Bay in the wild-card round and had the Yankees on the cusp of elimination. All Cleveland’s kids have to do now is beat the Yankees in baseball’s most hostile environment.

    This was the kind of game the Yankees envisioned Cole pitching in when they signed him to a nine-year contract in 2019 as a free agent after he spent two seasons with the Astros.

    There was no magic this time for the Guardians, who overcame a two-run deficit in the ninth inning on Saturday to win Game 3 in dramatic fashion.

    Cleveland not only rallied against New York’s bullpen on Saturday, but the Guardians became the first team in 168 games to overcome a multi-run deficit and beat the Yankees in the postseason.

    The Guardians closed within 3-2 in the fourth on Naylor’s second career postseason homer — and third homer in 17 at-bats — off Cole.

    Naylor’s laser shot into the seats fronting the outfield bullpens sent Cleveland’s crowd into a frenzy that got wilder as the animated DH circled the bases swinging his arms back in forth as if he was rocking a baby.

    Bader’s 429-foot shot into the left-field bleachers put the Yankees ahead 3-0 in the second, and not only gave them momentum but belief they would even the series following their gutting loss in Game 3.

    New York’s dugout erupted with shouts and fist pumps as Bader rounded first following his fifth hit in six career at-bats off Quantrill. He also homered in Game 1, when Cole and the Yankees beat Quantrill.

    The Guardians got a run back in the third, but missed a chance for more when Ramírez got a little overaggressive on the base paths.

    With runners at first and second, Ramírez dropped a bloop into left field that scored rookie Steven Kwan. Thinking he had a chance to take an extra base, Ramírez went about halfway to second before realizing he had no chance and got thrown out retreating to first.

    HAND HIM AN OSCAR

    Oscar Gonzalez’s quick rise from rookie to postseason has mirrored Cleveland’s stunning jump to World Series contender.

    While the 24-year-old, who has twice walked-off postseason wins with clutch hit, has an aggressive approach at the plate, he’s also a selective hitter — most of the time.

    “He swung at a ball in in the fifth inning that almost hit him in the Adam’s apple,” Francona said, recalling a Game 3 at-bat. “And he comes back and that was an at-bat he went deep to right field. He’s a little unique.”

    BULLPEN BUSINESS

    Boone spent much of his pregame news conference attempting to clarify the communication breakdown between him and Holmes in Game 3.

    After the bullpen melted down, Holmes, who was recently sidelined with a shoulder strain, told reporters he was available. Boone, though, said he never informed the right-hander he was down, creating confusion and awkwardness.

    Boone said he decided not to pitch Holmes on consecutive days so as not to risk his health. Holmes reported soreness after pitching in Game 2.

    Boone said he and Holmes “hashed it out.”

    “He could have pitched and 1, 2, 3, boom, we win,” Boone said. “That’s one of the tough decisions that comes across that we try to make thoughtfully.”

    UP NEXT

    Making his first career relief appearance, Taillon allowed two runs ad three hits without recording an out in Game 2. Civale hasn’t pitched since Oct. 5. He’s won his last three starts with a 3.18 ERA. The right-hander was on the injured list three times this season.

    ———

    More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb and https://twitter.com/AP—Sports

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  • Gerrit Cole Answers Skeptics By Shining Under The Yankee Stadium Lights

    Gerrit Cole Answers Skeptics By Shining Under The Yankee Stadium Lights

    Gerrit Cole produced plenty of good moments through the 99-win regular season but also did enough things wrong to provide skepticism among fans, especially on the social media portion of the internet.

    Perhaps scarred by the AL-worst 33 homers allowed, including the nine to Boston and possibly fearful of a reprise of last night’s nightmarish appearance in the wild card game at Fenway Park, the apprehension was there along with this question:

    Should Gerrit Cole start Game 1 of a postseason series?

    It was not only a topic among fans but a private discussion by the Yankees in their postseason planning meetings, though it seemed like a brief conversation before Cole ultimately was tapped for the start.

    On Tuesday, there were a few anxious moments such as the 2-0 fastball Steven Kwan hit into the right field seats, sending pitching coach Matt Blake for a quick consultation. The next few at-bats that followed were also a little apprehensive for some when Cole loaded the bases as part of throwing 60 pitches through three innings.

    The early 60-pitch sequence ended with a nasty slider Andres Gimenez swung at for strike three, one pitch after not getting a call on a close offering. Then quick innings and Cole only allowed two more baserunners allowed while the Yankees took a lead.

    “It was just a really awesome experience overall,” Cole said. “Just sometimes when you feel the crowd or the energy, it sometimes can become a little easier just to quiet things down because it’s so loud. I don’t know if that makes sense, but it does to me. I mean, just what a great atmosphere.”

    A few hours later, Cole was the talk of the first of the of 11 wins the Yankees hope to get in their first championship since 2009 and it was more special for everyone involved since it was the moment he waited since being introduced at the standard lavish press conference on Dec. 18, 2019, the day he was accompanied by his famous childhood sign: “Yankee fan forever, Yankee fan today”.

    That sign made its appearance in the 2001 World Series 18 years before he signed the record $324 million contract but for various reasons, the postseason under the lights in a packed house in the Bronx eluded Cole until Tuesday.

    First there was the COVID-19 pandemic that led to the 60-game season. During the truncated season, a midseason slump kept the Yankees from hosting an home game in an empty stadium and they traveled to Cleveland where Cole dominated the opener. Then there were two games in the ALDS against Tampa Bay being played in San Diego and Cole did his part in Games 1 and 5 where the Yankees in a normal setup would be in Tropicana Field.

    Last year as baseball trickled back towards normalcy, the Yankees sputtered through an inconsistent first half that likely cost them an AL East title. Eventually they found their footing but sputtered again in September and wound up not clinching the postseason until their final at-bat of the regular season and when they did it was merely for the trip to Boston where Cole could not get out of the third while pitching on a hamstring he tweaked during the Yankees’ seven-game losing streak a month earlier.

    Cole was the runner-up in the Cy Young voting to Robbie Ray, who was last seen allowing a 438-foot homer to Yordan Alvarez in Houston as the Yankees lined up for their baseline introductions.

    On Monday, Cole seemed locked in with his answers with short clipped answers at the podium, talking as if he would rather be in the high intensity setting of a bullpen session than in a big room with pictures of Yankee history on the side walls and offering his common detailed answers. It was there he relayed an exchange with catcher Brian McCann upon joining Houston:

    “You know the postseason is a drug, right?” I said, “Yeah, it is. It is.” You just can’t get enough of it.”

    If Cole pitches as well as Tuesday, he and the Yankees may get more than enough of the postseason. There’s still a long way to go but this was a good start and validation of Boone’s defense of Cole, who sometimes can appear flustered at circumstances.

    “Really good season,” Boone said Monday. “Obviously because it’s Gerrit Cole and because he came here and signed a huge contract, the long term, and the ace of this staff, the New York Yankees staff, nothing will ever be necessarily good enough. But I think he’s had a very strong year.”

    And for one night it was good enough just like his six scoreless starts, his two flirtations with no-hitters in June.

    “Gerrit was really good,” Boone said. “He did a really good job of owning the moment and being unpredictable. And I thought his breaking ball was really on point.”

    Larry Fleisher, Contributor

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  • Yankees lose finale in Texas without Judge, end with 99 Ws

    Yankees lose finale in Texas without Judge, end with 99 Ws

    ARLINGTON, Texas — The New York Yankees settled for 99 wins in the regular season, and the American League record 62 home runs for slugger Aaron Judge.

    Their focus has already shifted to trying to win their 28th World Series title, and first since 2009.

    “This is the fun part of the year,” Judge said.

    Judge was out of the lineup a day after hitting his American League record 62nd homer, and the Yankees lost their regular-season finale 4-2 against the Texas Rangers on Wednesday to finish with 99 wins. At the beginning of July, New York was on pace for 118 wins, four more than the franchise record set in 1998.

    “AL East champs. I mean, that’s what we hope for in the regular season. You know, we put ourselves in a good spot now. So I guess first mission accomplished in that regard,” manager Aaron Boone said. “There’s some satisfaction in that. But, you know, our group … we want to win it all. And that’s what we’re focused on now.”

    Jose Trevino homered for the AL East champion Yankees (99-63), who missed a chance to reach 100 wins for the 22nd time and give the major leagues five 100-win teams for the first time. They get an extended break before opening the AL Division Series at home on Tuesday.

    While Judge made his case to play in the regular-season finale, Boone insisted on a break for after the slugger played 55 consecutive games, and 157 overall, in the pursuit of Roger Maris’ single-season home run mark that had stood since 1961.

    Fans in the crowd of 28,056 chanted “We Want Judge! We Want Judge!” in the ninth inning, hoping to get to see him get a shot at one more homer.

    “Not today. He got plenty of them all year,” Boone said. “Hopefully, we’ve got a lot left now in the postseason.”

    Judge finished with a .311 batting average, second in the AL behind the .316 of Minnesota’s Luis Arraez. Judge led the other Triple Crown categories with 62 homers and 131 RBIs.

    Charlie Culberson and Jonah Heim homered for the Rangers (68-94), who wrapped up their sixth consecutive losing season. Texas was 17-31 after interim manager Tony Beasley took over Aug. 15, when fourth-year manager Chris Woodward was fired and two days before president of baseball operations and longtime general manager Jon Daniels was also let go.

    Texas had lost seven games in a row before its 3-2 win in the second game of a doubleheader Tuesday night.

    “It is good to be able to end on a winning note. Really we played a good series,” Beasley said. “ That was good for the guys to come out, compete until the end and not quit and not give up. … That’s a testament to the guys in that clubhouse and the character in the clubhouse and what they’re made out of. So those are positive signs of moving forward.”

    Rangers rookie Glenn Otto (7-10) struck out five and walked two while allowing two runs and four hits over six innings. Matt Moore, the third Texas reliever, worked the ninth for his fifth save in six chances.

    New York starter Domingo Germán (2-5) gave up four runs over 4 1/3 innings, ending his career-best streak of 12 consecutive starts allowing three earned runs or fewer.

    Trevino’s solo homer in the fourth inning, his 11th overall but first in 40 games, put the Yankees up 2-1. Texas got even on Heim’s 16th homer in the bottom half, then went ahead in the fifth when Bubba Thompson had an RBI double and scored on Marcus Semien’s single.

    Veteran utility player Culberson, who played for only the third time in the past 32 games, hit his second homer in the third.

    SEATS

    A crowd of 28,056, a day after only the third home sellout, left attendance at 2,011,361 their 13th straight full season of 2 million or more. They drew 2,132,994 in 2019, the final season of their old ballpark.

    SHORT HOPS

    Rangers 1B Nathaniel Lowe singled and walked to finish the season batting .302, the team’s first qualifier to hit .300 since Elvis Andrus and Adrian Beltre both did in 2016. Lowe had 93 hits after the All-Star break. … The game broadcast Tuesday night on the Yankees’ YES Network averaged 636,000 viewers and peaked at 933,000 for the 8:15-8:30 p.m. EDT quarter hour, just after Judge’s 62nd homer. The Yankees are averaging 371,000 viewers on YES, their highest since 2011. … The Yankees had a plus-240 run differential, only the second time since 1955 it was that high. The other was plus-309 in 1998.

    POSTGAME CELEBRATION

    Boone said the entire team got together after Tuesday night’s game to celebrate Judge’s 61st homer and Gerrit Cole’s 257 strikeouts that broke Ron Guidry’s franchise single-season record set in 1978, when he was 25-3 and won the AL Cy Young Award.

    “Those two records to fall in probably 5, 7 minutes was crazy. It’s unbelievable,” said Boone, adding that the celebration included Guidry calling in to congratulate Cole, with the entire team able to hear and share in that.

    TRAINER’S ROOM

    Yankees: 2B Gleyber Torres missed the entire four-game series after being a late scratch from the starting lineup Monday for flu-like symptoms. Boone said Torres was feeling better and had no fever, but still was dealing with a sore throat and body aches. A COVID test came back negative.

    UP NEXT

    The Yankees host play Cleveland or Tampa Bay in the ALDS. The Rangers will have a managerial search, and their next game is the 2023 season opener March 30 at home against Philadelphia.

    ———

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