This recap was going to read very differently in the seventh inning of Wednesday’s 9-8 Yankees’ win. CC Sabathia finally had an off night, middle relievers once again came back to haunt the Yankees, and the offense couldn’t do enough to overcome the deficit. Thankfully, the Yankees managed to come back from four runs and won the game in walk off fashion via a Starlin Castro home run.
This game has the box score of a Coors Field game, even though it was held at Yankees Stadium. The scoring opened up in the second inning with a grand slam from Chase Headley, who has a 127 wRC+ since his first extra-base hit on May 12th. The Rockies went on to score eight unanswered runs; six off Sabathia and two off Anthony Swarzak, but the momentum completely changed in the seventh inning.
The game had the looks of another rough Yankees loss, but suddenly a Carlos Beltran three-run home run made it a one-run game. Didi Gregorius tied it up with an RBI single, and The Big Three did their thing with three perfect innings, complete with six strikeouts. The Rockies were clearly still reeling in the eight, as the Yankees threatened but were unable to score. On the second pitch of the ninth inning, Starlin Castro drove a pitch to the left field seats, giving the Yankees a huge win.
The Play: Starlin Castro hits a walk off home run (+.364 WPA)
Well, duh. The Yankees biggest hit of the afternoon would be their last one, a walk off solo home run off the bat of Starlin Castro. Castro has been struggling since a hot April, but hopefully he can turn it around after winning the game for the Yankees on Wednesday.
Top Performers
Yankees: Starlin Castro (3-5, HR, 2 R, RBI); Carlos Beltran (1-5, HR, 1 R, 3 RBI); Chase Headley (1-4, HR, 1 R, 4 RBI)
Rockies: Nick Hundley (2-4, HR, 2 R, 3 RBI)
The Highlight: Carlos Beltran blasts a three-run home run
The real highlight of the night was Castro’s home run, but that’s already been mentioned so we’ll have to ‘settle’ for a game changing shot from Carlos Beltran. Beltran has been the Yankees’ savior this season, and cracked his 19th home run of the year to change the momentum of Wednesday’s contest. It would bring the Rockies’ lead to just one run, which would be erased four batters later by Didi Gregorius.
Up Next
The Yankees get to stay at home to face the Twins on Thursday. The Yankees took three of four in a series last week against Minnesota, who happen to be one of the worst teams in baseball. Masahiro Tanaka, who has a 2.91 ERA this season, will face southpaw Tommy Milone who has a 5.79 ERA in 2016.
Photo Credit: Adam Hunger / USA TODAY Sports