About Last Night: Yankees 11, Mariners 2
By Derek McAdam
September 18, 2024
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The New York Yankees defeated the Seattle Mariners by a score a 11-2 last night, with a few milestones thrown in for one player. Here’s a recap from last night’s game.
Quick Stats:
W: Luis Gil (14-6): 5 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 5 K
S: Marcus Stroman (1) : 3 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 3 K
L: Bryan Woo (8-3): 4.2 IP, 9 H, 7 ER, 1 BB, 7 K
The Big Story:
As the AL East race becomes more intense as the season winds down, the Yankees got some good news just before the start of the game. The San Francisco Giants defeated the Baltimore Orioles by a score of 10-0, allowing the Yankees to potentially go up by four games with a win.
The Yankees did not take long to get some runs across the board. In the 1st, following a Gleyber Torres infield single and Juan Soto double, Aaron Judge ripped a two-run double down the left field line to give the Yankees a quick 2-0 lead. However, the next three batters would go down, and the Yankees would strand Judge.
In the bottom of the inning, Luis Gil hit Victor Robles with the first pitch of his outing. After loading the bases by walking two additional batters, he finished the inning by throwing out Robles at home, who was attempting to steal the base while Gil wasn’t looking.
In the 2nd, with the bases loaded, Judge hit a two-run single to give the Yankees a 4-0 lead. This hit brought his new RBI total for the 2024 season to 136. In the bottom of the inning, Jorge Polanco hit a solo home run into the right field seats, his 15th of the season to cut the Yankee lead to 4-1.
In the 4th, Soto hit a two-run home run to give the Yankees a 6-1 lead. This home run was a milestone for Soto. He now has a home run in every active MLB stadium. It was also his 200th career home run and 40th of the season. Combined with Judge, they are the first Yankee duo since Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris in 1961 to have 40+ home runs in a single season.
In the 5th, Jasson Dominguez hit his first home run since his return to the Major League roster, giving the Yankees a 7-1 lead.
In the following inning, with the bases loaded, Austin Wells hit a bases-clearing double to extend the Yankees’ lead to 10-1.
In the bottom of the 8th, Luke Riley hit a solo home run off Marcus Stroman to cut the Yankee lead to 10-2. However, the Yankees added a run in the 9th, when Oswaldo Cabrera hit an RBI single to score Jazz Chisholm Jr. to make the new score 11-2.
Player of the Game:
Soto had several milestones in this game, so I definitely believe he is worthy of it.
Notable Performances:
Torres had a three-hit game, and Judge knocked in four runs for the Yankees. Julio Rodriguez also had a four-hit night for the Mariners, although he failed to knock in any runs.
Better to Forget:
Woo definitely had one of the worst outings of his career, so I will give it to him. As for the Yankees, there’s no one in particular that deserves this dis-honorable mention.
My Take:
Wow! I said last week that I felt I had not covered a Yankee win in several weeks. It was actually more than three months! And I am so glad to be back in the win column.
This was a solid performance from both sides. The offense clicked on several levels, and pitching held the Mariners to only two runs. You can’t ask for more than that.
Offensively, I was worried after the 1st inning that the two runs would end up being one of the only runs that the Yankees would end up scoring, but I was proved wrong. They ended up taking advantage of several opportunities throughout the game to push runs across.
Judge continues to prove that he is the best player in the entire league (yes, the entire league) and it is fantastic to see. If he can keep this momentum going into the post-season, the Yankees can definitely make a run for a World Series championship.
As for the pitching, Gil was not at his best. However, he still managed to give the Yankees five innings of one-run baseball. However, the bullpen combination of Tim Mayza and Stroman gave the Yankees the final four innings of solid work, even though Stroman gave up one solo home run. I’m sure this is tough on Stroman, but if he can adjust to this position, the Yankees are even stronger come the post-season.
Overall, this was a fun game to watch, and the Yankees did not disappoint at all. Hopefully, they don’t come out with a slow offensive game like they typically do after a high-scoring affair. They need as many wins as they can get to fend off the Orioles.
What’s Next?:
The Yankees will go for the series victory tonight against the MarIners. Nestor Cortes is scheduled to start for the Yankees, while Bryce Miller is set to go for the Mariners. First pitch is scheduled for 9:40 p.m. EST,, and will be broadcast on Amazon Prime Video.
Rizzo didn't hit last night, but he made 4-5 great scoops, saving throwing errors, so he stays in the lineup tonight. Stanton stays on the bench tonight, but Judge plays RF and Soto gets a DH day. If Wells's hand is bothering him today when he wakes up, let Trevino catch. THAT is what a backup is there for, to play when the starter is a bit banged up, or needs a blow. I'm playing Cabrera again at SS tonight, giving Volpe another day off. I said it in the beginning of the season, they have to give Volpe a a game off every 3-4 weeks, but just like last year, they never gave him a blow. Both thi…
Chisholm entered hitting, Wells is hitting, Torres(!) is hitting
if Dominguez hits (and slugs)
it's a formidable line-up
We've all discussed ad nauseum the flaws in this Yankees team. However, so much of going deep into the playoffs and possibly winning a championship is timing, meaning, getting hot and healthy at the right time. The Yankees seem to be peaking just at the right time. Even the much maligned Gleyber Torres is playing his best baseball right now. With Judge and Soto and now several others playing good ball, 'it's right in front of us" to coin a phrase.
As nice as it was to see Juan Soto get those 3 milestones with one homer, and the 2 big RBI hits from Judge, I thought the biggest hit of the night was the bases loaded, bases clearing double by Austin Wells. That truly put the game out of reach for the Mariners, and solidified Wells's bid for AL Rookie Of The Year.
Aaron Judge's current RBI total of 136 RBI's to me, is a more impressive thing than his current HR total of 53. Of the 3 main offensive categories, HR, RBI, and Batting Average, the most important of the three is the RBI category. If I had a choice of either building an entire lineup of slugging …