Yankees rally with three runs in 10th inning against Red Sox, win 11-8

The Yankees rallied with five unanswered runs, scoring three in the 10th inning, against the Red Sox in a 11-8 win.

Here are the takeaways…

-After scoring three runs in the first inning off Boston starter Kutter Crawford, it looked like the Yankees were on their way to an easy win after dropping a tough loss on Friday night against the Red Sox.

Juan Soto got things started with his 27th homer of the season – a two-run shot to right center field that traveled 400 feet. Aaron Judge followed with an even more impressive 432-foot solo bomb over the Green Monster as New York’s two best hitters went back-to-back before an out was even recorded.

It was the fifth time the Yankees have gone back-to-back this season and the third time Soto and Judge have accomplished that feat.

-However, Marcus Stroman couldn’t keep it stick. Making his 21st start of the year for New York, the right-hander served up a solo shot to Wilyer Abreu to get Boston on the board in the first inning. The Red Sox followed with two singles before Tyler O’Neill doubled home two more to tie the game at 3-3.

-New York took the lead once again in the second off of Oswaldo Cabrera’s home run. Abreu did his best to run the ball down and actually caught the ball after flipping over the short porch in right field, but he couldn’t secure it in his glove.

-But just like in the first, Stroman couldn’t put up a zero in the bottom half of the inning after his defense let him down. Anthony Volpe began the inning with an error and Boston followed with two straight singles to bring home another run. Masataka Yoshida added an RBI single later in the inning which could’ve been worse had the Yankees not turned a double play on a flyout to Trent Grisham who threw out a runner at third base for an outfield assist.

Stroman finished his outing after 3.1 innings, giving up nine hits and five runs (three earned) with one walk and no strikeouts on 60 pitches (34 strikes). His season ERA rose slightly to 3.64.

-To their credit, the Yankees showed some fight and tied it in the fifth and again in the seventh. In the fifth, Judge had his third hit of the night – a run-scoring single to bring home Alex Verdugo who doubled to lead off the frame. In the seventh, Ben Rice hit a sacrifice fly.

-However, each time New York tied it up the Red Sox took back the lead in the bottom half of the inning which was a theme of the night as Yankees pitchers were unable to secure a shutdown inning.

O’Neill hit his 21st home run in the fifth inning off right-hander Jake Cousins before launching his 22nd in the seventh off right-hander Michael Tonkin. Tonkin had an outing to forget, allowing two doubles sandwiched between a hit-by-pitch that gave Boston a two-run lead after the home run.

-Judge did his best to get New York back, putting his team on his back with a 4-for-4 night. His final hit came in the eighth inning with the Yankees down 8-6, but with runners on first and second and one out. Judge doubled to deep center field to score a run, but Soto ran through a stop sign at third base and attempted to score to tie the game and was gunned down at home for the second out. Austin Wells flew out in the next at-bat to end the inning.

Soto’s decision to try and score was confusing, to say the least, with just one out in the inning.

–Kenley Jansen came in to pitch the ninth and allowed a one-out double to Rice to give New York some life. Then, with two outs, Grisham stepped to the plate and after falling behind 0-2, battled back and blasted a long double to left center to tie the game which sent it to extra innings after Clay Holmes threw up a 1-2-3 inning.

-In the 10th, the Yankees scored three thanks to Wells’ sacrifce fly (after the Red Sox walked Judge to load the bases) and Gleyber Torres‘ two-run double high off the wall in center field. Holmes had some traffic on the basepaths in the bottom half of the inning, but wound up getting the win.

Game MVP: Aaron Judge

Judge finished 4-for-4 with a home run, three RBI, two walks and three runs scored.

Highlights

What’s next

The Yankees finish their series with Boston on Sunday Night Baseball. First pitch is scheduled for 7:10 p.m.

LHP Carlos Rodon (10-7, 4.41 ERA) goes for New York while the Red Sox counter with RHP Tanner Houck (8-6, 2.71 ERA).