Faced with the Boston Red Sox being the hottest baseball team on the planet right now, the New York Yankees have to keep winning either to stay just ahead in the American League standings or maintain pace to hold their postseason bid.
Ryan McMahon’s sacrifice fly in the bottom of the 10th inning lifted the Yankees to a 3-2 walk-off win over the Atlanta Braves on Friday night. That victory kept them a half-game ahead of the charging Red Sox for second place in the AL East in addition to the league’s top wild-card playoff spot.
Against Braves reliever Tyler Kinley in the 10th, José Caballero struck out with a two-strike bunt attempt going foul. Kinley then intentionally walked Spencer Jones and walked George Lombard Jr. after missing low and outside with several sliders. That moved designated runner Luis Garcia Jr. to third base.
Facing McMahon, Kinley worked the Yankees’ third baseman inside with five pitches before leaving a slider on the low, outside corner of the strike zone. McMahon lifted the ball to right field, deep enough for Garcia to score the game-winner.
The Braves and Yankees were tied 0-0 into the eighth inning with Atlanta’s trade-deadline addition Tyler Mahle pitching 6 scoreless innings with 9 strikeouts and 3 hits allowed. Max Fried countered for the Yankees by keeping his former team off the scoreboard for 6 1/3 frames, allowing 3 hits with 7 strikeouts.
But Braves third baseman Austin Riley broke the scoreless tie to lead off the eighth with a home run off Yankees reliever Fernando Cruz. Cruz’s splitter on a three-ball, two-strike count was inside but stayed in the middle of the zone, allowing Riley to turn on it.
Atlanta increased its lead to 2-0 in the ninth with Matt Olson golfing a low, inside sinker from Tim Hill over the right-center field fence.
Against Braves closer Raisel Iglesias in the bottom of the ninth, Lombard reached base on a one-out infield single. He advanced to third base when Iglesias threw the ball past Olson at first base. Iglesias recovered to strike out McMahon, but then spun a changeup in the middle of the zone to Austin Wells and the Yankees catcher hit it for an RBI double.
Amed Rosario followed up by drawing a walk on an eight-pitch battle with Iglesias, missing outside with a sinker. The Braves closer then left another changeup in the middle of the zone to Ben Rice, who blasted a double off the right-field wall to drive in Wells and tie the score at 2-2.
The Yankees have won four of their past seven games to stay just ahead of the Red Sox amid their 27-3 surge, one of the best in baseball history. On Saturday, they face Chris Sale (12-6) and his 2.08 ERA — second-best in the NL. Gerrit Cole (5-5, 3.42) gets the start for the Yankees.
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