NFL
By Billy Lewis
The New York Yankees 2022 season has come to an end. As has been the case in every season since 2009, the Yankees’ season has ended far before they wanted it to. This year it ends with the Houston Astros sweeping the Yankees and celebrating their American League Pennant in Yankee Stadium.
The series went like most Yankee playoff runs have gone since the emergence of the Baby Bombers in 2017, the bats went silent. They played nine games this postseason, five against the Guardians and four against the Astros, and they only managed more than six hits in one game, Game 4 of the ALCS when it was far too late.
Yankees Had Their Chances
The ALDS going five games put the Yankees behind the eight ball heading to Houston for the ALCS. Nestor Cortes had to start Game 5 in the ALDS which in turn forced Jameson Taillon to start Game 1. Cortes was also pitching great in Game 5 but was pulled from the game in the fifth inning after only 61 pitches. Houston had the pitching advantage in Game 1 as they turned to probable AL Cy Young, Justin Verlander.
Verlander was shaky early on and the Yankees actually took the first lead of the series when Harrison Bader hit a second-inning home run. The lead didn’t last long as the Astros tied the game in the bottom of the second when their ninth hitter, Martin Maldonado hit an RBI double.
Taillon threw well in Game 1 though but was pulled after giving up a one-out double to Jeremy Pena in the fifth inning. Clarke Schmidt came in and after loading the bases with a couple of walks, induced a double play off the bat of Kyle Tucker. Had Aaron Boone not pulled Cortes early the night before, maybe Jonathan Loaisgia is able to come in to pitch the sixth.
Instead, Schmidt was left in the game and gave up two solo home runs. Houston added another home run off of Frankie Montas and the Yankees would eventually lose 4-2. Anthony Rizzo hit a solo home run in the eighth inning, and had the Yankees used their high-leverage relievers earlier in the game, perhaps that home run would have been a go-ahead home run.
Game Two was another close game in Houston. Luis Severino took the hill for the Yanks and Framber Valdez for the Astros. Severino pitched great, however, threw one bad pitch that Alex Bregman deposited into the Crawford boxes in left field for a three-run home run. The Yankees answered back scoring two unearned runs in the next inning.
Aaron Judge threatened to give the Yankees the lead in the eighth inning, but Kyle Tucker ran down a deep fly ball to right field. Of course, after 62 regular season home runs, the Bombers had a feel for a Judge home run. Off the bat it appeared he got another one, but it seems that playing with the open roof in Minute Made Park knocked the ball down. After the game, Boone lamented how the open roof may have played a factor in the game.
Yankees Home Cooking Spoiled
Though they had their chance to at least split, if not come home with a 2-0 series lead, the Yankees struck out 30 times (30!) in Houston in the two games. So, they entered Saturday afternoon in the Bronx down 2-0 in the series. Gerrit Cole took the mound for the Yankees looking to get them back into the series. Two outs into the second, Christian Vazquez hit a lazy fly ball into right-center field that should have ended the inning.
Aaron Judge and Harrison Bader, both gold glove caliber players, had a miscommunication in the outfield. Judge ran in front of Bader and the ball fell out of Bader’s glove. The Yankees should have been getting ready to hit, and instead, Chas McCormick had a chance to step into the box. McCormick promptly made the Yankees pay for their error as he used the short porch in right field to his advantage hitting a two-run home run.
Harrison Bader and Aaron Judge had a miscommunication on this fly ball and Bader was unable to make the catch.
Chas McCormick homered in the next at-bat. pic.twitter.com/wib2VsaTr9
— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) October 22, 2022
That would be the only scoring in the game until the sixth inning. The Astros loaded the bases off of Cole to start the sixth. With no outs, instead of trusting your ace, Boone decided to bring in Lou Trivino to try to escape the jam. Almost unsurprisingly, Trivino allowed all three inherited runners to score and the Yankees would go on to lose 5-0.
Looking to stave off elimination in Game 4, the Yankees jumped out to an early three-run lead. Fans had hope early on, especially with Nestor Cortes getting the start. However, Cortes appeared to be injured in the third inning. In the blink of an eye, the Yankees lead was gone as Jeremy Pena hit a game-tying three-run home run.
Despite falling down 4-3, the Yankees again took the lead thanks to an Anthony Rizzo RBI single and Harrison Bader’s fifth home run of the playoffs. Up 5-4 in the seventh, the Yankees’ defense had its final turn to bite them in their playoff run.
With Jose Altuve on first and one out, Pena hit a ground ball to second basemen, Gleyber Torres. Knowing both runners were quick, Torres hurriedly flipped the ball to Isiah Kiner-Falefa. The quick flip was too much for IKF to handle, and Torres’ flip ended up in left field.
The Torres error was the last break the Astros needed. They took a 6-5 lead and never looked back. Fittingly Judge came to the plate as the Yankees’ final hope in the ninth inning. In what could have been his last at-bat as a Yankee, Judge grounded out to pitcher Ryan Pressley and the Astros celebrated a sweep on the Bronx infield.
