The ultimate hit on Wednesday night time bounced into the glove of Aaron Hicks, and naturally he didn’t need it. Hicks, the Yankees’ left fielder, gathered Starling Marte’s game-winning single, held it for some time after which flung it apart like a bit of gum. A ball boy retrieved it and tossed it into the gang at Citi Area. Trash for the Yankees, treasure for the followers.
The Mets’ 3-2 victory gave them a two-game sweep of the Yankees within the first Subway Collection since 2015 by which each groups have been holding first place of their divisions. They are going to meet for 2 extra video games subsequent month within the Bronx, and possibly once more within the fall.
“Oh, that’d be nice,” mentioned the Mets’ Pete Alonso, who hit his twenty sixth homer on Wednesday. “If we’re enjoying towards one another in November, that’d be superior.”
Alonso mentioned he knew the Mets and the Yankees had met within the World Collection a very long time in the past — a blow to these of us who bear in mind it effectively, however correct from his perspective. The Polar Bear was only a cub in October 2000, solely 5 years previous when the Yankees danced on the garden at Shea Stadium after successful their third title in a row.
There was no celebration for the guests in Flushing this time.
The Yankees have misplaced 10 of their final 15 video games, together with a street doubleheader final week to the Houston Astros, who thumped them within the season collection, 5 video games to 2. These outcomes pierced the Yankees’ aura, maybe, however not their confidence. They’d prefer to remind you that they’re nonetheless baseball’s greatest group, at 66-33 earlier than Thursday’s recreation with Kansas Metropolis.
“We’re unfazed,” Supervisor Aaron Boone mentioned. “We all know the place we’re going.”
Boone was feisty after Wednesday’s loss, disputing the notion that the Yankees’ lineup has too many energy hitters susceptible to hanging out. It was “pretend information,” he claimed — can’t we bury that time period already? — however acknowledged that it positive was good to have a brand new outfielder, Andrew Benintendi, who makes loads of contact and leads the American League in singles.
“We’ve acquired savages within the lineup, actually good hitters,” Boone mentioned. “Benintendi’s an important hitter — will get on base at a extremely excessive clip, hits from the left facet, provides you some stability. If we get him, that’s one other actually good big-league hitter so as to add to the combination that’s going to elongate out your lineup.”
Boone spoke simply earlier than the commerce turned official: Benintendi to the Yankees, three Class A pitchers to the Royals. A Gold Glove left fielder final season, Benintendi was hitting .320 with a .387 on-base proportion and three house runs for Kansas Metropolis. Benintendi, 28, helped the Boston Crimson Sox win the 2018 championship, batting second in all of their World Collection victories.
“Bat-to-ball abilities, pace, all the time works a very good at-bat — and in case you’re not too cautious, man, he can depart the yard on you,” mentioned the Yankees’ Aaron Choose. “I’ve seen it many occasions at Yankee Stadium. Only a well-rounded participant, that’s for positive.”
Benintendi, who has seven profession homers in 30 video games at Yankee Stadium, is principally the antithesis of Joey Gallo, the outfielder who has hit .160 with 191 strikeouts in 418 at-bats since his commerce from Texas final July. Gallo’s 25 homers haven’t been sufficient to offset all of the empty at-bats.
The Yankees produce other urgent points: reliever Michael King had season-ending elbow surgical procedure this week, the starter Luis Severino has been shut down for nearly two weeks with a proper lat pressure and the slugger Giancarlo Stanton is out with a left Achilles’ harm. This season, it seems, is just not as charmed because it appeared for the primary three months.
“We all know we’re actually good, and we all know we’re going to hit a snag within the season,” Boone mentioned. “We’re geared up for it. We’re able to take care of it. We truly embrace just a little little bit of adversity. We’ll energy our means via it, no query in my thoughts.”
With an 11½-game lead within the A.L. East via Wednesday, the Yankees have purpose to be snug. The Mets lead Atlanta by solely three video games within the Nationwide League East — however they, too, are hoping to learn from adversity in time.
Max Scherzer, who turned 38 on Wednesday, missed greater than a month with a strained left indirect muscle; if he’s at his greatest in October, the pressured relaxation can have been value it. He has returned as an ace in full this month, with a 1.39 earned run common in 5 begins, passing Bob Gibson on the profession strikeout listing alongside the best way.
Scherzer retired Choose 4 occasions on Wednesday, thrice with third-strike sliders that Choose anticipated however couldn’t deal with.
“The primary at-bat, I used to be all around the heater,” mentioned Choose, who lined out to proper. “I used to be type of sitting on the slider the remainder of the sport, and generally when that occurs, you broaden the zone just a little bit.”
The Mets’ different multi-time Cy Younger Award winner, Jacob deGrom, additionally pitched on Wednesday, working 4 innings for Class AAA Syracuse. DeGrom, who has handled a stress response on his proper scapula, has not pitched within the majors in additional than a 12 months. The break day, in principle, might make deGrom at his strongest when it issues most, although the Mets can’t be sure.
“If you pitch on the degree he’s pitched at, I don’t know,” Supervisor Buck Showalter mentioned. “I can’t sit right here and say that I do know. However it will likely be enjoyable to search out out.”
Showalter mentioned the Mets hoped to activate deGrom from the injured listing early subsequent week — proper across the Aug. 2 buying and selling deadline, because it occurs. There is no such thing as a higher arm the Mets might discover on the open market, and no higher purpose for optimism {that a} deep playoff run may very well be of their future.
And in the event that they find yourself in a rematch of that long-ago duel with the Yankees? As Alonso mentioned: superior, certainly.
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