CLEVELAND — The Yankees were leading the ALDS Game 3 on Saturday until their bullpen blew itself out. Oscar Gonzalez won the game for the Guardians with a two-run single off Clarke Schmidt with the bases full.
Cleveland stunned the Yankees with a 6-5 comeback win at Progressive Field.
From one strike away from taking the lead in the series, which would have put them one win away from the ALCS, the Yankees now stare at the risk of elimination. This has exposed their bullpen woos that hit headlines most of the time in the last leg of the regular season.
After losing Game 3 of the ALDS on Saturday, the Yankees have to win Game 4 to keep their season going. They will field Gerrit Cole as the starting pitcher.
After their Game 3 loss, manager Aaron Boone told:
“Tonight, obviously, was a gut-wrenching ending. But we’ve got to get over it. Now, we’re obviously up against it, but I still love our chances. Got Gerrit going [Sunday]. Got to go take care of business and try and get back to New York.”
The Yankees are in this position primarily because the shorthanded bullpen was unable to hold their lead and convert it into a victory. In the bottom of the ninth inning, Boone decided to replace Wandy Peralta with Schmidt rather than Clay Holmes. This decision put the Yankees in this position and fans roasted the manager for the mistake.
Boone stated that he didn’t want to use Holmes on back-to-back nights because doing so would put the right-hander “in jeopardy” and that Holmes would have been “compromised” because he had just come off the injured list due to a strained shoulder. Holmes threw 16 pitches in Friday’s victory.
However, Holmes gave the impression that he was prepared to pitch. The outcomes were disastrous without his involvement.
Peralta recorded the first out of the inning by getting Luke Maile to strike out. The team had a two-run lead going into the inning.
Myles Straw advanced to second base following a throwing error by Isiah Kiner-Falefa.
After a single to left field by Steven Kwan put runners on the corners, the Yankees brought in Schmidt. This allowed Jose Ramirez to reach on an infield hit, thereby loading the bases for Josh Naylor to come in and score.
After recovering, Schmidt was able to get Naylor swinging. Gonzalez then hit a two-run single up the middle on a 1–2 slider to win the game and send Cleveland into a craze.
Aaron Judge broke his 0-for-9 slump in the series with a two-run homer to center field that tied the game at 2-2 in the third inning, and Cabrera put the Yankees ahead with a two-run homer of his own in the fifth inning to put the Yankees in the lead.
Right-handed pitcher Triston McKenzie was responsible for both home runs. On July 3, he faced the Yankees in Cleveland and went seven innings without allowing a hit. In the wild-card round, he faced Tampa Bay and pitched six innings without allowing a hit.
Early on, it looked like the Yankees were in trouble. Luis Severino‘s first postseason start in three years was a rough one, as he gave up a run in each of the first two innings.
Judge’s huge 449-foot home run to center in the third tied the game for the Yankees. It was his first hit of the playoffs. However, it went in vain as the Yankees lost the game.
In the top of the fifth, Cabrera hit a two-run home run that went 409 feet and gave the Yankees their first lead. He finished it with a strong bat flip.
By the end of the second inning, Severino had thrown 56 pitches and given up six hits. He then calmed down and got 13 straight outs before Kiner-Falefa made a delayed throw.
The single kept the inning going, and Gabriel Arias’s hit through the right side of the infield put runners on second and third and ended Severino’s night.
Severino was taken out of the game and replaced by Lou Trivino, a right-handed pitcher. Cleveland went to its bench and took Hedges’ place with Will Brennan, a left-handed batter.
Brennan hit a single to right, making the score 4-3.
Straw came up and hit a liner that Gleyber Torres caught for the third out to keep the Yankees’ lead safe.
With one out in the seventh, Harrison Bader hit his second home run of the series, giving the Yankees a 5-3 lead.
Jonathan Loaisiga got the first two outs of the bottom of the seventh, but then Ramirez beat out a slow chopper to third for an infield hit.
To play Naylor, the Yankees went to Peralta.
Peralta was down 2-0, but he struck out the next batter to end the inning. He then got the next five batters out before stumbling in the ninth.
Where did you think the Yankees made the mistake?
