BOSTON — After two devastating losses here and despite some sloppy play early, the Yankees showed some fight. They rallied in the eighth inning Saturday afternoon to pull out a 4-3 win over the Red Sox at Fenway Park.
The Yankees (51-46) have now won three of the 12 games they have played against the Red Sox (60-39) this season. It was their first win at Fenway this year. They are still eight games behind Boston in the American League East, even with the win.
Aroldis Chapman worked around a two-out walk and double to hold on and pick up his second save in as many appearances after going a month without one. Estevan Florial doubled to lead off the eighth and gave the Yankees a pulse. With two outs against Nathan Eovaldi, who has simply dominated the Yankees this year, Brett Gardner singled him in, chasing the Red Sox right-hander.
Adam Ottavino, whom the Yankees dealt to the Red Sox last winter in a salary dump, came in to face Giancarlo Stanton, whose bloop got lost in the shadows and dropped in for a single. That opened the door for the Yankees with lefty Rougned Odor coming up, looking for redemption. After committing two errors that led to the Red Sox’s early lead, Odor doubled off the wall to drive in two more and tie the game. Gleyber Torres’ single scored him and gave the Yankees their first lead since Thursday night, when they coughed it up in the ninth and 10th.
Obviously, the Yankees are playing undermanned this season.
They played Saturday without Aaron Judge, Kyle Higashioka and Gio Urshela, all of whom are still on the COVID-19 injury list, as well as Luke Voit, who’s on the IL with knee inflammation. They also had Gary Sanchez on the bench Saturday with a “locked up” back. The bottom of the lineup card looked like a spring training road trip lineup.
Still, those call-up guys were the ones chipping away at Eovaldi Saturday. In the Red Sox right-hander’s 7 2/3 innings, Florial had two hits against him, and Rob Brantly and Greg Allen each had one of the seven hits off Eovaldi. He struck out eight and did not walk a batter.
Jameson Taillon pitched well, but the Yankees were not sharp behind him. He was charged with three runs, but just one earned, on four hits over seven innings. He struck out four and walked three. It tied his longest outing of the season and was really one of his best starts as a Yankee.
Aaron Boone sees the right-hander, who did not pitch in 2020 as he rehabbed from his second Tommy John surgery, settling back in and expanding his repertoire.
“Just getting the mound reps,” Boone said is the reason Taillon is getting stronger. “After missing a lot of time, just getting out there and getting back into a season and gaining that experience of playing again every fifth and sixth day. Being on the mound coupled with just the versatile arsenal. He’s added more two-seamers into his repertoire with the change-up and slider.”
“So I just think he’s way less predictable out there,” Boone added. “And just a lot more comfortable as the season has gone on.”
He was much better then the defense he was playing in front of.
The Yankees looked sloppy from the outset. The Red Sox first unearned run came on Enrique Hernandez’s triple off the center-field wall, Odor sent the cut-off throw to third base into the Yankees dugout to send the Red Sox second baseman home. J.D. Martinez led off the second with a double and former Mets catcher Kevin Plawecki doubled him in.
Red Sox center fielder Jarren Duran led off the third inning by reaching on Odor’s second error of the day. Odor booted the ball, allowing Duran to get to second base. He scored on Rafael Devers’ sacrifice fly.
