NEW YORK — The Yankees refused to let their season slip away Wednesday night.
Facing elimination in Game 2 of their best-of-three Wild Card Series, the New York Yankees battled back from multiple deficits to beat the Red Sox 4-3 at Yankee Stadium. The win forces a decisive Game 3 on Thursday.
Austin Wells provided the go-ahead hit. Jazz Chisholm Jr. supplied daring baserunning and clutch defense. And a sellout crowd witnessed another classic chapter in the storied Yankees–Red Sox rivalry.
Wells comes through in critical Yankees moment
The eighth inning carried the weight of the Yankees season with the score tied 3-3.
Chisholm drew a two-out walk against Boston reliever Garrett Whitlock. Austin Wells stepped in and pushed the at-bat to a full count. On the seventh pitch, he drove a changeup down the right-field line.
The ball stayed fair, and Chisholm was already in motion from first base. He rounded the bases at full speed, his helmet flying off near third. The Yankees infielder’s headfirst slide into home beat Carlos Narvaez’s tag by inches.
“I felt like I made a decent swing on one of his best pitches,” Wells said. “Having him at first, I was kind of expecting him to steal or do something. When it landed, I was just waiting to turn around and see him scoring.”
Yankees captain Aaron Judge called it one of the best moments of the night.
“He’s a guy that can run it up to 100 mph with his sinker, has a good feel for his off-speed pitches,” Judge said of Whitlock. “The biggest thing is he locates all his pitches so it’s a tough at-bat. For him to go up there and have that at-bat in the biggest spot of the game and come through like that, it speaks volumes.”
Chisholm answers critics with stellar performance
Chisholm’s frustration was visible after the Yankees benched him in Game 1. He kept his back to reporters and appeared upset with the decision.
On Wednesday, he responded with impact plays for the Yankees.
His biggest defensive moment came in the seventh inning. Carlos Rodon had loaded the bases with no outs before Fernando Cruz entered from the bullpen. Cruz recorded two outs, then Masataka Yoshida smoked a grounder up the middle.
Chisholm dove to his right to knock it down. His throw to first was late, but it kept Nate Eaton from scoring at third base.
“I want to make sure it’s mentioned: Jazz saved us the game, completely,” Yankees reliever Cruz said.
Judge praised his teammate’s resilience.
“What do you expect? The guy is a game-changer,” the Yankees captain said. “It just shows you the maturity, to take what happened the day before and bring it into today’s game. He showed up ready to play today and ended up having the biggest plays for us throughout the night.”
Chisholm explained how he let go of his frustration.
“I played MLB The Show and I mercy-ruled someone,” Chisholm said with a laugh. “That’s how I get my stress off. It’s true.”
Rice ignites early Yankees offense
Rookie Ben Rice set the tone for the Yankees early. In the first inning, he launched a two-run homer off Red Sox starter Brayan Bello with Cody Bellinger aboard.
The blast energized the Yankee Stadium crowd and gave New York a 2-0 lead.
“Being able to set the tone early for us in the first inning and give us a lead, I know I was able to get the boys fired up,” Rice said.
Boston responded in the third when Trevor Story tied the game with a two-run single off Rodón.
The Yankees regained the lead in the fifth. Judge lined an RBI single to left, scoring Trent Grisham for a 3-2 advantage. Story answered again in the sixth, hitting a solo homer to left-center to even the score at 3-3.
Cruz escapes critical jam
The seventh inning brought the game’s most dramatic tension. Rodon walked two and hit another batter to load the bases before Yankees manager Boone turned to Cruz.
The Yankees reliever faced the heart of Boston’s order under maximum pressure.
Ceddanne Rafaela popped up a bunt for the first out. Nick Sogard flied out for the second. Then came Yoshida’s grounder that Chisholm kept in the infield, preventing the go-ahead run. Story flied out deep to center to end the inning.
Cruz erupted as he left the mound, pumping his fist and shouting toward the dugout.
“It’s time to compete. It’s time to go after it,” the Yankees pitcher said. “I just compete. I grab the ball, that white thing, and let’s go, you vs. me.”
Rice added, “I could see every vein popping out of his head.”
Bednar seals the victory
David Bednar, who gave up a costly run in Game 1, got his Yankees redemption in the ninth. He struck out the first two batters, then retired Rafaela on a deep fly to right. Judge secured it on the warning track, and the crowd erupted.
“We couldn’t wait to get here today and start this game,” Judge said. “The energy’s the same. We can’t wait to get Thursday’s game started.”
Everything on the line Thursday
The Yankees-Red Sox series now shifts to a do-or-die Game 3. Rookie right-hander Cam Schlittler, a Walpole, Massachusetts native who began the year in Double-A Somerset, will start for New York.
Boston counters with rookie left-hander Connelly Early, who has only four career starts. Scheduled starter Lucas Giolito was scratched with an injury on the eve of the series.
The winner advances to face Toronto in the Division Series. The loser’s season ends.
Since the Wild Card round expanded in 2022, teams that dropped Game 1 are 0-12 in those series. The Yankees look to break that streak.
Rodón pitched six innings, allowing three runs on four hits with six strikeouts and three walks. Bello lasted just 2 1/3 innings, yielding two runs on four hits.
“What a game,” Boone said. “It’s been two great games.”
The rivalry writes another chapter Thursday night, with everything on the line.
“It’s Yankees–Red Sox postseason,” Judge said. “It’s a lot of emotions as a kid we dream about.”
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