Max Fried threw six strong innings, and Luis García Jr. and Cody Bellinger slammed home runs Wednesday night as the Yankees blew out the Red Sox, 9-2, in Game 2 of the AL Wild Card Series at Yankee Stadium.

The victory means the Yanks won the best-of-three series against Boston, 2-0. Now they head into an AL Division Series date with the top-seeded Tampa Bay Rays. This DS, which features the AL’s two best teams, starts on Saturday at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Fla.

After the final out, the Yankees met on the field in a handshake line, a mellow celebration of a convincing beatdown of their rivals.

The Red Sox season is over. New York has eliminated Boston in the Wild Card round in each of the last two years.

Here are the takeaways...

-- Even without the injured Aaron Judge, the Yankees lineup pounded Boston pitching, scoring nine runs in the opener and nine more times in Game 2. The Yanks outscored Boston in the series, 18-2, and outhit the Sox, 26-7.

-- Fried threw 21 pitches in the first inning but quickly got his workload in order with a seven-pitch second. He didn’t encounter much trouble all night in allowing just three hits, including a solo homer by Willson Contreras. He relied mainly on his sweeper, cutter and four-seam fastball, though he threw three other pitch types, too. Fried struck out six and walked one in earning the third postseason win of his career.

-- García, who did not start Game 1 because the Red Sox had a lefty starter, gave the Yankees a 1-0 lead in the fourth inning with a drive to right that was clocked at 107 miles-per-hour off the bat. Entering the game, García and Ben Rice were the only players on the Yankees roster who had hit a home run off Gray in their careers. García may have been an imperfect trade acquisition because a right-handed slugger might have fit the Yankees better, but he’s contributed all through his time in pinstripes and now in the postseason, too.

-- The Yanks tacked on in the fifth inning and might have had more if they had been more conservative on the basepaths. With two outs and Austin Wells running from first on a 3-2 pitch, Rice hit a grounder through to right field. Wells sprinted to third, putting the Yanks in a strong spot. That’s when Boston manager Chad Tracy yanked Gray and brought in lefty Erik Miller to face Bellinger. Bellinger hit an RBI single for a 2-0 lead, and García followed with a single to left. But third-base coach Luis Rojas had Rice try to score from second, and Nate Eaton cut him down at the plate, keeping the Red Sox just two runs behind.

-- Gray, who had a brief, unsuccessful stint with the Yankees across 2017-18, threw 4.2 innings and allowed six hits and two runs. He was booed by the sellout crowd of 49,004 on his way off the mound. But Yankee fans probably should be happy that the Sox took him out, because the Beantown relievers could not keep the score reasonable.

-- With two outs in the sixth inning, Contreras brought Boston within one run with his fourth career postseason homer that snapped the Red Sox’s playoff scoring drought of 26.2 innings dating back to last year. It’s the worst drought in team history. The homer, which came on a 3-2 pitch, was reviewed by umpires because a fan caught it near the wall in right, but it was upheld.

-- The Yankees broke open the game in their half of the sixth inning, scoring six times to go up, 8-1. George Lombard Jr. drove in a run with a single for his first career postseason RBI, Wells hit a sac fly, Ryan McMahon hit an RBI grounder and then Bellinger delivered his 11th career postseason home run, a three-run shot. Along the way, the Yanks knocked out Garrett Crochet, the ace starter who the Red Sox put in their bullpen for the playoffs. He had not pitched since April 25 because of a shoulder injury and perhaps it showed. He struck out the first batter he faced, Spencer Jones, but Jones reached first on a dropped third strike and then stole second and went to third on Adley Rutschman’s throwing error. Then Crochet gave up three straight singles, including a bunt hit by Trent Grisham, resulting in a run and loading the bases and the inning went haywire.

-- In the seventh inning, Jazz Chisholm Jr. stole a base, a nifty callback to August, when a Red Sox broadcaster criticized Chisholm for stealing a bag in a lopsided game. He and Grisham then pulled a double steal to put runners on second and third with one out. Wells followed with an RBI single to push the lead to 9-2. It was Wells’ fourth RBI of the series.

-- Here’s something to tuck away for later in the playoffs: The Red Sox challenged Grisham in center in the third when a bloop hit fell in front of him. Eaton sped into second base for a hustle double, easily beating Grisham’s throw. It ended up being harmless – Fried struck out Jahmai Jones looking on a sweeper and retired Rutschman on a grounder to end the inning – unless, that is, other teams take advantage if there are similar opportunities going forward.

Game MVP: Luis Garcia Jr.

García Jr., who got the scoring started in the fourth inning with his first career postseason home run, a 387-foot solo shot off Boston starter Sonny Gray. He added two singles and finished 3-for-5 on the night.

Here are the takeaways...

Game MVP: Luis Garcia Jr.

Highlights

Popular in the Community