*Photo from the Boston Globe*
On a big night in Boston, the rivalry got another epic chapter. Jeter Downs scored the game tying and game winning runs, Alex Verdugo had a pair of big hits, and the Boston Red Sox defeated the New York Yankees with a 6-5 win in 10 innings on Saturday night in Boston.
Although it's just their 4th win in the last 10 games, it's an important one for the Red Sox. They are in sole possession of the top wild card spot in the AL, moved into second place in the AL East, and have set themselves up for a potential series split when they looked to be in trouble entering Saturday.
It was also a big day for Downs and Verdugo in particular. As the two main pieces of the return in the Mookie Betts trade a few years ago, both had big roles in this win. Downs added his first MLB hit, an RBI single in the 10th, and scored the game tying run in the 8th, and the winning run in the 10th. Verdugo was the hitter in both runs scored by Downs.
Verdugo said of Downs that "For him to come up in a big situation, not try to do too much, because a lot of guys right there would try to launch, try to do something crazy, he stuck with his approach, stayed on a good pitch and shot the hole. Good things happened."
The Red Sox got on the board in the second inning, when Bobby Dalbec singled into center field, scoring Xander Bogaerts to make it 1-0 Red Sox. In the 5th inning, Aaron Hicks tied it for the Yankees, making it 1-1 on a solo home run into the right field seats. In the top of the 6th, an RBI double from Anthony Rizzo and an RBI single from Josh Donaldson made it a 3-1 Yankees lead.
In the bottom of the 6th, Rob Refsnyder answered for the Red Sox, blasting a solo home run to bring the Red Sox to a 3-2 deficit. In the 8th, Verdugo singled into left field, scoring Downs to tie the game 3-3. The top of the 10th saw the Yankees take a 5-3 lead on RBI doubles from both Rizzo and Aaron Judge. In the bottom half, Downs got his first MLB hit on an RBI single to cut it to 5-4, then both Downs and Refsnyder scored on a single by Verdugo to cap the comeback win.
Downs said after the game that "Someone asked me how I’m feeling. I said I’m pretty numb right now, so that’s how it’s going so far. We all have dreams, we all have wishes, but I don’t think you can make something like this up to be honest. I dream a lot. I envision things. But this is something you can’t really put into words."
Rookie Kutter Crawford started for the Red Sox, allowing one run on 4 hits, striking out 6 hitters in 5 innings. Ryan Brasier only got one out while allowing two runs, giving way to Matt Strahm. After that, John Schreiber threw one inning, Tanner Houck threw two, and Jake Diekman got the win in the 10th.
Jordan Montgomery was the starter for the Yankees, allowing two runs on 5 hits in 5 2/3 innings. Michael King came on and threw two innings out of the bullpen before Clay Holmes came in, giving up the tying run in the 8th, which was charged to King. Wandy Peralta blew the save and got the loss in the 10th.
Rizzo said after the game "Credit to the Boston hitters; they had really good at-bats and didn’t try to do too much. They got hits when they needed to. We believe in our bullpen. Our team is built on pitching and defense. We’ve just got to bounce back tomorrow."
Up next, the Red Sox and Yankees conclude their series on Sunday night. Nick Pivetta starts for the Red Sox, while Jameson Taillon goes for the Yankees.
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