The Boston Red Sox defeated bitter rivals New York Yankees on the ALDS. Boston will face the Houston Astros on the American League Championship Series.
Kimbrell Shuts Yankees Down
The biggest rivals in sports clashed once again in a playoff series. Boston went on the attack early as J.D. Martinez hit a three run homer. The Red Sox were off and running taking the lead early. Steve Pearce added one more run to the lead with an RBI single in the bottom of the third. Xander Bogaerts also brought a run home with a sacrifice fly. The Yankees were down 5-0 by the end of the third inning.
New York got on the scoreboard at the top of the sixth inning. First baseman Luke Voit hit an RBI single and shortstop Didi Gregorius reached first on a fielder’s choice to shorten the Red Sox’s lead to three runs. Voit later reached base on fielder’s choice too, the Red Sox still had a two run lead as time was running out at Fenway. Aaron Judge homered in the top of ninth. That was not enough as closer Craig Kimbrell held his ground, ending the game with three straight strikeouts. The Boston Red Sox lead the series after the first nine innings of play. Final score: 5-4
Yankees Level The Series
The second game of the series was a completely different story. Masahiro Tanaka pitched five innings, allowing just three hits and one run. On the other hand, David Price pitched one and two third innings as he struggled early into the ballgame. Judge hit his second home run of the series in the first inning. Catcher Gary Sanchez homered twice and collected a total of four RBI. Boston was not going down easily as Bogaerts got the Red Sox on the scoreboard with a solo home run. Ian Kinsler hit an RBi double for Boston’s second, and final run of the ballgame. With a final score of 6-2, the Yankees tied the series before heading to New York for the third game.
A Crimson Horse Stomped The Bombers
The Red Sox spoiled the Yankee homecoming with a blowout on game three. Nathan Eovaldi threw seven innings, struck out five batter and, allowed a single run. Things were much more difficult not only for Luis Severino, but also for the entire Yankee pitching staff. Christian Vazquez opened up the scoring with an RBI single in the second inning. J.D. Martinez had two RBI as he hit a sacrifice fly and an RBI single. Andrew Benintendi helped the Red Sox’s cause with a 3 RBI double. Lastly but by no means least, Brock Holt had an outstanding game. Holt hit for the cycle and collected a handful of RBI. At the end of nine innings of play the scoreboard read 16-1. Boston’s crushing win over New York gave them the 2-1 lead in the series.
Yankees Go Down Fighting
The fourth game of the series was another nail biter in the rivalry. Rick Porcello took the mound for the Red Sox hoping to seal the deal at New York. CC Sabathia did the same for the Yankees. Sabathia struggled in the first inning as the Red Sox loaded up the bases. Nonetheless, CC got out of trouble in the first two innings of play. The Bronx Bombers were not so fortunate in the third as the Red Sox got on the scoreboard.
Martinez brought home a run with a sacrifice fly to open up the scoring. Kinsler hit an RBI double to bring home the second run of the game and Eduardo Nunez singled to bat one more run in. New York was down 3-0 by the end of the third. Zach Britton came in from the bullpen to begin the fourth and immediately gave up a home run to Christian Vazquez. Boston was now up by four runs.
The Bronx team was not done yet as Brett Gardner hit a sacrifice fly to put his team on the scoreboard. New York’s bullpen did a solid job preventing the lead from extending further. Britton, David Robertson, Dellin Betances and, Aroldis Chapman allowed one run and struck out seven batters combined oever six innings of work. New York seemed out of the game in the ninth until they loaded up the bases with nobody out. Kimbrell lost command on the mound and hit Neil Walker in the foot. Walker took the base and the score was now 4-2. Sanchez brough the Yankees even closer with a sacrifice fly as the score was 4-3. Boston fans heaved a sigh of relief. The final play of the game at first was confirmed to be an out after review and the series was over. The Red Sox won on enemy soil.
The Red Sox will face the Astros on the ALCS. The game is schedules to start at 8:09 PM E.T on TBS.