NEW YORK _ Aaron Judge's majestic, 457-foot blast into Citi Field's third deck _ as impressive as it was _ only counted for one run on Wednesday night.
And another mediocre start by Jaime Garcia, in a close Subway Series game, meant that the Yankees' vaunted bullpen would play a heavy part in the outcome. Only this time, Aroldis Chapman wouldn't be a factor.
A go-ahead, two-run double by Didi Gregorius in the seventh inning sent the Yankees to a 5-3 win before 42,260 fans. Adam Warren tossed two scoreless innings and David Robertson picked up the save.
On Thursday night, the Yankees will send Luis Severino against Steven Matz, attempting to complete the four-game Subway Series sweep.
And perhaps Chapman will be asked to close it out.
Before Wednesday's game, Joe Girardi again pledged his full faith and confidence in Chapman.
"He will continue to be my closer," the Yankees manager said. But the struggling, lefty flamethrower had Wednesday night off, after he'd experienced some hamstring tightness during his latest shaky performance.
After finishing the Yankees' 5-4 win on Tuesday at Yankee Stadium _ a stint that included a two-run homer to Mets rookie Amed Rosario _ Chapman was given a day to make sure his leg was sound.
"We think that his leg is not going to be an issue, but I will not use him (Wednesday night)," Girardi said. No tests were scheduled on Chapman's leg, and if the medical staff clears him, Girardi said, "he'll be my closer" for Thursday night's Subway Series finale.
Dellin Betances was also unavailable, having pitched in the previous three straight games.
Over Chapman's last three appearances, the lefty flamethrower has yielded five earned runs on three hits _ two of them home runs _ with four walks, a hit batter and four strikeouts in 31/3 innings.
Still, "I have a ton of confidence in him and he's too good not to get back on track," Girardi said, owing Chapman's latest missteps to being mechanically off and relying too much on his slider. "He's going to get through this little blip here and we'll get him right."
Leaking confidence is seemingly an issue; Chapman bent in frustration as Rosario's shot to right-center field left the ballpark.
"Confidence can change really quickly," Girardi said. "You have a good outing, you can get on a roll. In my mind, I'm convinced he's going to get on a roll. The law of averages tells me that's going to happen."
The left-handed Garcia was less than average again, charged with three runs in 51/3 innings. Garcia hasn't gotten through six innings in his three starts since being acquired via trade from Minnesota, pitching to a 6.32 ERA as a Yankee.
Entering with one out and runners at second and third, Tommy Kahnle (2-3) permitted the tying run on a Travis d'Arnaud sac fly, but got a win thanks to the Yanks' seventh-inning rally.
Judge came up with the bases loaded and one out in the seventh, sending a buzz through the sellout crowd. But after he popped out, Gregorius _ the Yanks' best all-around player this season _ delivered and the Chapman-less, Betances-less bullpen was charged with getting the final nine outs.
"There's other guys in that bullpen that have had tough times this year and we didn't abandon them," Girardi said of Chapman's struggles following Tuesday's game. "If you start doing that every time a player has a tough time, and you kind of abandon them, it can be risky.
"And you're still going to have to pitch in (high-leverage, late-inning spots). There's still going to be important innings when he's in the game" before the ninth inning.
