Boston's aggressive 'pen plan runs out of gas as decisive Game 3 looms
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NEW YORK – Pitching in the shadow of dominant closer Aroldis Chapman all season, ace setup man Garrett Whitlock has been tremendous in his own right.
But with a chance to help his team sweep the Yankees in Game 2 of this AL Wild Card Series, Whitlock faltered in the bottom of the eighth inning, and the Red Sox took a 4-3 loss that forced a decisive Game 3 between the rivals on Thursday night.
Did you expect anything less than this series going to the limit?
After the Red Sox took a tense Game 1 that went down to the final pitch on Tuesday, the Yankees came back and did the same on Wednesday.
When Ceddanne Rafaela’s drive to right field left his bat with two outs in the ninth, there was some thought in the Boston dugout that a game-tying homer was in store. Instead, Yankees captain Aaron Judge corralled it at the track to send the series to its fitting conclusion.
“I thought it was a great ballgame,” said Whitlock. “I thought both sides played really well. I think you saw that last night and tonight. And hopefully we can put together a good game tomorrow and go from there.”
Coming back out after a scoreless seventh, Whitlock retired the first two batters in the eighth. But the momentum changed after a walk to Jazz Chisholm Jr. Austin Wells followed by belting one into the corner in right for an RBI single that snapped a tie.
Whitlock went a season-high 47 pitches, likely keeping him out of action for Game 3.
“We were all in,” said Red Sox manager Alex Cora. “He is one of our best pitchers. [Pitch count] got up there. We were doing everything possible to get to the top of the ninth with a tie game.”
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In Whitlock’s final 31 appearances of the regular season, he had a 0.30 ERA, giving up one earned run in 30 innings.
This was a game that had several subplots, and the defeat could hardly be pinned on Whitlock.
Quick hook for Bello
Though No. 2 starter Brayan Bello had an ordinary September compared to the rest of his season, it was somewhat stunning when Cora came to get him after just 28 pitches with one out in the bottom of the third with the game tied at 2. After all, the Yankees were facing elimination, not the Red Sox.
“It was a tough lineup,” said Cora. “A lot of lefties. The at-bats were getting better with the lefties, and we had a bunch of [lefties] in the bullpen. I felt like at that point, we had to do this. It doesn't feel good because you want the kid to go out there and get his experience and pitch deep into the game. I felt at that moment we needed to.”
Was Bello surprised his night ended so abruptly?
“A little bit,” said Bello. “I don’t feel disappointed about myself. I felt like I tried to do my job, and he made the decision.”
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Duran’s drop
With two outs in the fifth, reliever Justin Slaten appeared to be out of the inning when he got the always-feared Aaron Judge to hit a routine fly ball to left field. But Jarren Duran didn’t get a good read, and the ball clanged off his glove as he dove for it. The RBI single put the Yankees ahead, 3-2.
Per Statcast, Duran had a 75 percent catch probability.
“I was playing pretty deep on Judge, and as I was coming in, I thought it was hit a little harder than it was, and then I gained more ground than I thought,” Duran said. “I didn't really have to go into a full dive there and just pushed the ball on myself a little more. It’s on me. This one’s going to sting a little bit. I know the game is 100 percent on me.”
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Big opportunity squandered in seventh
Clearly, the game was not 100 percent on Duran, or even close to it. Trevor Story picked up his teammate by smashing a game-tying solo shot to left to open the sixth.
The Red Sox looked primed to take the lead in the seventh when starter Carlos Rodón suddenly lost his command, walking Nate Eaton and hitting Duran. First and second, nobody out. Though Rafaela has come up with some of the biggest hits for the Red Sox this season, he tried to put down a sacrifice bunt and popped it to the pitcher. Was he bunting on his own?
“We will keep that one as a decision for the team,” said Cora. “I don't want to tip my hand to them.”
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Even still, the Sox had a chance to take the lead when Masataka Yoshida came through with his second pinch-hit knock in as many nights, this one a grounder that Chisholm made a tremendous stop on to keep it in the infield. Yoshida went head-first into the first-base bag as the throw squirted just a bit past Ben Rice. Could the speedy Eaton have scored from third?
“Obviously, it was a big play,” said Eaton. “We didn’t score. I obviously couldn’t see it. As I’m getting to third, I’m told to stop, and then I couldn’t see how far the ball was away when it got by Rice.”