The Yankees won 6-5 at home against the Baltimore Orioles on Thursday (April 24) at Yankee Stadium, thanks to Anthony Volpi’s game-winning sacrifice fly in the 10th inning.
Riding a five-game winning streak, the Yankees improved to 30-20 and reached a six-game winning percentage to remain in third place in the 안전놀이터 AL East. They closed the gap on the division-leading Tampa Bay Rays and second-place Baltimore to five games and two games, respectively. The Rays are now 8-2 in their last 10 games.
Rookie shortstop Volpi had the game-winning hit, but the game wouldn’t have gone to extra innings if not for Aaron Judge’s home run.
Trailing 5-4 in the bottom of the ninth, Judge launched a dramatic, game-tying home run in his fourth at-bat. He beat Baltimore closer Felix Batista with a solo shot to left field. The first and second pitches, a 100.7-mph and 100-mph fastball, respectively, were called strikes and fouls.
But on the third pitch, an 87.8-mph splitter up the middle in an unfavorable count, Judge turned his bat lightly and sent it 403 feet over the left field fence.
With his 14th homer of the season, four days after his last against the Cincinnati Reds on July 20, Judge moved into a tie for the AL lead in that category. Texas Rangers’ Arroldis Garcia also has 14.
Since returning from a hip injury on April 10, Judge has been on a tear, hitting eight homers in his last nine games, including a two-homer performance against the Tampa Bay Rays on April 14.
After going 1-for-4 with a double, one run scored, one RBI and one walk, Judge is batting .298 (42-for-141) with 14 home runs, 33 RBI, 32 runs scored, a .400 on-base percentage, a .652 slugging percentage and a 1.052 OPS. In the NL, he’s tied for third in home runs and first in on-base percentage and OPS. The defending MVP is in full force.
After a scoreless top of the 10th inning, the Yankees loaded the bases with no outs in the bottom of the 10th when leadoff hitter Harrison Bader singled to move Isaiah Kainer-Palepa to third. Willie Calhoun drew a walk to put runners on first and third, and Volpi lifted a 96-mph fastball from Baltimore’s Baker deep into center field to bring home the third baseman with no outs.
Yankees starter Gerrit Cole had a rough outing, giving up five runs on six hits and three walks in five innings, but Jersey’s homer helped him avoid his first loss of the season. However, it was his second five-run outing since May, worsening his ERA to 2.53.