For the Red Sox, this weekend offered a tantalizing opportunity: Take three out of four in the Bronx against the Yankees, and Boston would secure the season tiebreaker and leap its rival in the standings. It would’ve been a fulfilling culmination of sorts for a club that was, just a few months ago, very down and incredibly out.
Instead, the Sox were outplayed and outclassed in a disappointing series loss that likely complicates their path to postseason glory. An ugly 16-1 drubbing on Sunday, in which infielder Andruw Monasterio had to throw the ninth inning, was the frustrating cherry on the bummer sundae in which the Yankees took three out of four. For New York, it was a reassuring result, one that further solidified the current AL East pecking order.
The AL East-leading Rays swept the Padres this weekend, pushing their division lead to 4.5 games over New York. That leaves the Yankees atop the wild-card race, despite having the second-best record in the American League. They’re now four games clear of Boston, which is five games safe of the next-closest club in the wild-card race.
Yes, there’s still a month or so of games to play. But the playoff picture is coming into focus, with this weekend’s result making a Yankees-Red Sox wild-card rematch a very, very likely outcome.
The Yankees still have the rotation advantage
Last postseason, Cam Schlittler elevated himself from nice story to world-beater with a masterful, eight-inning, 12-strikeout performance against the Red Sox in AL wild-card Game 3. Less than a year later, the Massachusetts kid has evolved into a co-front-runner for the AL Cy Young Award alongside Toronto’s Dylan Cease. On Friday against his boyhood team, Schlittler further reinforced his awards case with six brilliant shutout innings in a nailbiting 1-0 Boston victory. It was a reminder that, in a rivalry overflowing with accomplished hurlers, Schlittler is top of the heap right now.
He also pushes New York’s rotation past Boston’s, at least on paper. As of right now, a three-game showdown between these teams would probably feature Schlittler, Max Fried and Gerrit Cole for the Yankees against Sonny Gray, Ranger Suárez and Payton Tolle for the Sox. Carlos Rodón, Will Warren and the currently injured Ryan Weathers are other options for New York. Boston could turn to Patrick Sandoval or exciting breakout rookie Jake Bennett.
Fried’s injury situation makes him something of an X-factor for New York, with the southpaw having navigated elbow discomfort all season. He returned from his latest IL stint over the weekend, working 3 ⅔ innings on just 63 pitches Saturday as skipper Aaron Boone opted for caution. Whether Fried can get himself back to his best self before October will be one of the Yankees’ bigger September storylines.
Meanwhile, Boston’s rotation, the club’s backbone all season, suddenly looks a bit shaky. Suárez was abysmal on Sunday. The 36-year-old Gray is having his next start skipped. A return for Garrett Crochet, who carved up the Yankees in wild-card Game 1 last year, is looking increasingly unlikely. If he throws in October, it’ll be out of the ‘pen. Tolle and Bennett, exciting they may be, are both rookies. The Yankees have a much more reliable group.
Roman Anthony’s return could be huge
Playing in a big-league game for the first time since May 4, the young slugger laced a double 101.6 mph to right field to lead off Sunday’s game. It was a loud reminder of why Anthony, who missed nearly four months due to a right wrist sprain, was supposed to be the centerpiece of Boston’s offense.
Debuting just a few weeks after his 21st birthday, Anthony stormed onto the scene last June and set the big leagues ablaze, coming good on his status as the sport’s top prospect. An oblique strain kept him sidelined for the playoffs — a large part of why Boston tumbled out against its rival in the wild-card round. But even that truncated showing was enough for the industry to believe. Anthony was added to Team USA for the World Baseball Classic and homered twice. He entered the year as a dark-horse MVP candidate.
Then the wrist started barking and didn’t stop. He relocated to the club’s Florida complex to better focus on his rehab. In his absence, the Sox revived their season. But while the team shined without him, Anthony is a special, special hitter who should upgrade Boston’s lineup immediately.
Cody Bellinger’s defense remains a game-changer
The Yankees’ glazy-eyed left fielder hasn’t quite got going at the plate since he came off the IL last week. That should come with time. But Bellinger is already making a massive impact with his glove and his arm. In the seventh inning of Friday’s game, with the Yankees clinging to a 1-0 lead, Bellinger delivered a 99.7 mph howitzer of a throw to nab the speedy Ceddanne Rafaela at home on a would-be sac fly. It was an outcome-altering moment, one that reinforced just how valuable Bellinger’s glove is for the Yankees.
While Bellinger was out, New York was primarily rolling with trade acquisition Heliot Ramos in left, rookie Spencer Jones in right and the solid-but-unspectacular Trent Grisham in center. Ramos struggled in Yankee Stadium’s spacious left field, an arena in which the fleet-footed Bellinger has grown comfortable over the years. His return pushes Ramos to right in a platoon with Jones, at least until Aaron Judge finally returns from his IL stint.
Heliot Ramos has his first big moment as a Yankee
Ramos, acquired from San Francisco at the deadline, had a bumpy first few weeks in pinstripes. Entering Sunday’s game, he’d yet to homer as a Yankee and was carrying an ugly 7-for-59 batting line. But facing southpaw Ranger Suárez with two men on in the fifth on Sunday, Ramos lofted a loopy curveball over the seats in right. It was easily his biggest moment yet as a Yankee.
Ramos could be a crucial character in a Sox-Yanks playoff series, even if Judge returns in the next few weeks. Boston’s rotation is extremely lefty-heavy, with Gray the only right-hander. The same is true for the back of Boston’s bullpen, led by southpaws Aroldis Chapman and Erik Miller. Ramos has been meaningfully better against wrong-handers this season and throughout his career.
There’s also a chance that Judge comes back healthy enough to hit but not healthy enough to play the outfield every day. That would push the three-time MVP to DH and leave an open spot in the outfield. How the Yankees would then sort everything out among Ben Rice, lefty-crusher Paul Goldschmidt and rip-roaring trade addition Luis Garcia Jr. remains to be seen. But it might leave a lane for Ramos in the grass, particularly against southpaws.
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