The New York Yankees won the major league baseball game against the Kansas City Royals with a 3-1 victory that saw them through to the American League Championship Series for the 19th time in the history of the franchise. The victory was largely thanks to Gerrit Cole’s sterling performance, who held the Royals to just one run over seven innings. After Cole, the New York bullpen, consisting of Clay Holmes and Luke Weaver, dominated the series, extending the scoreless streak of this postseason to more than 15 innings.
The Yankees are set to play against either Cleveland or Detroit in the impending American League Championship Series at Yankee Stadium. The game is scheduled for a Monday night start. Cleveland forced the winner-take-all Game 5 with their win over Detroit on Thursday and it looks like both teams are going to go all out on Saturday to secure victory.
The Yankees owe their win to star players Juan Soto, Gleyber Torres and standout of Game 3, Giancarlo Stanton, who drove in runs for the team. This win, away from home, perfectly mirrors the Yankees high-achieving regular season where they won 50 games on the road – their best performance in just over two decades. Michael Wacha from the Kansas City side, on the other hand, couldn’t last five innings, giving up two runs, six hits and a walk to the Yankees.
Despite this loss, the Royals had a magnificent run this season, especially given their track record of being a 106-loss team just the previous year. This time, they made their first postseason appearance since their World Series victory in 2015. With long-term deals set up for young players like Bobby Witt Jr, optimism is running high in Kansas City about this being a start of a new chapter rather than an end.
The Yankees made their intentions known right from the onset of the game, with Torres hitting the game’s first pitch from Wacha for a double. Soto followed by driving in a run with a hit on the third pitch. The Yankees continued to expand their lead throughout the game, setting a formidable pace that was matched with equally outstanding performances in defence by Cole and the Yankees bullpen.
The game was not without its fair share of drama. Tensions peaked in the sixth inning, following a hard tag on Maikel Garcia by Anthony Volpe, leading to a stir amongst both teams. However, their disruptive energy seemed to awaken the Royals, with Witt and Pasquantino both scoring hits amidst the renewed vigour of the sellout crowd. Nonetheless, the Yankees managed to keep their cool, with Cole getting Perez to pop out, ending the inning still in the Yankees’ favour with a 3-1 score line.
