NEW YORK _ The Yankees understand there is more to a tight September race than the youth-driven joy ride they have been on for a while. Players get tired and banged up. They need rest. Sometimes, though, all they need is one day off, or maybe only four innings.
Jacoby Ellsbury entered in the fifth inning of a vitally important game, after Aaron Judge strained his right oblique on an awkward swing, and Ellsbury broke a scoreless tie with a home run to right field in the seventh. Then Didi Gregorius, kept out of the starting lineup for a second consecutive game, came up next as a pinch hitter and also homered to right. Those veterans built on the excellent work of another, starter CC Sabathia, and helped the Yankees beat the Dodgers, 3-0, Tuesday night in a game they really could not afford to lose.
"All we do is focus on our game," said Gregorius, who said his sore ribs felt better than they did Monday. "We can't control the other teams. We just have to focus on playing our games, getting 'W's.' "
Two "L's" in the previous two days put the Yankees in a bind, regardless of their soaring spirits lately. Their margin for error was squeezed to just about nothing. Joe Girardi was not taking any chances, going to Dellin Betances for a four-out save to preserve a win for Adam Warren. The club received breathing room in the ninth when Gary Sanchez hit a home run, the 14th of his remarkable rookie season.
The heat has been and will be on everyone in the crowded wild-card race, but so is pain and fatigue.
"You have to keep these guys fresh. Tomorrow is more important than today," Girardi said, explaining why he didn't start Ellsbury, who hit the first of two homers off Ross Stripling, a high shot into the second deck. The manager made a point to say that Ellsbury did not ask out of the lineup. "But sometimes guys just physically need a day."
Pressure was on Sabathia to not allow the Yankees to get behind early (entering Tuesday night, they were 42-23 when they scored first, 34-44 when the opponent scored first). "Each game gets a little more important, especially where we are," Girardi said before the game. He could not have asked for more from Sabathia, who gave a performance worthy of October. He left to a standing ovation with one out in the seventh of a scoreless game, having allowed only three hits and one walk and struck out seven.
"He's a guy who's still finding ways to get guys out. He's a veteran who's savvy and doesn't give in much," said Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, who recalled having seen the 36-year-old Sabathia as a youngster with the Indians. He added it's "pretty exciting for baseball" that his starter Tuesday night, rookie Julio Urias, is pretty much in that same role.
Urias, the No. 4 prospect in all of baseball last offseason, was pulled after 32/3 scoreless innings, leaving the bases full. He is expected to be in the bullpen when the Dodgers, who lead the NL West, make their likely appearance in the postseason. This night had a bit of a postseason feel, with the scoring low and the pressure increasing.
The Yankees will learn more Wednesday about Judge, another of the rookies who have led the surge, after an MRI. But Tuesday night, the veterans did their part.
"Everybody is helping each other out," Gregorius said. "The young guys are helping the older guys, the older guys helping the young guys."
