BOSTON — Despite Friday at times feeling like it, October is still a few weeks away.
But before then, if nothing else, the Yankees proved they can, in fact, win a game at Fenway Park — a big one at that.
Backed by Luis Gil throwing six no-hit innings and Aaron Judge passing Joe DiMaggio on the club’s all-time home run list, the Yankees knocked off the Red Sox 4-1 in front of a sellout crowd of 36,760 on a crisp night at Fenway Park.
After suffering through eight straight losses to the Red Sox (81-67) earlier this year — including a three-game sweep here in June — the Yankees (82-65) have won back-to-back games against their rival while creating a one-game lead over them atop the AL wild-card standings.
They also kept pace with the Blue Jays (who hold the tiebreaker over the Yankees), remaining three games back of first place in the AL East with 15 games to play.
“We want to set a statement for the rest of the season,” Jazz Chisholm Jr. said. “We’re out there trying to win the division right now. I feel like this win is going to really help us and start us on a good way.”
The Yankees, who have bigger goals in sight but clinched a 33rd consecutive winning season on Friday, could not get out of their own way the last time they were here in June. But they used a familiar recipe — a Judge home run, strong starting pitching and enough contributions from their supporting cast — to take the series opener.
Judge set the tone, clobbering a 468-foot blast to Lansdowne Street off Lucas Giolito in the top of the first inning, climbing past DiMaggio for fourth on the all-time Yankees home run list with 362. The shot, which Ben Rice said “electrified us,” marked Judge’s fourth home run in his past four games, giving him 47 on the season.
“Especially any time you come into Fenway Park, it’s going to be an electric atmosphere,” said Judge, who also scored on Cody Bellinger’s single in the third that made it 2-0. “For us getting a run there in the first and then grabbing the second one in the third, kind of put the crowd out of it a little bit was big-time. Let Luis Gil calm down, let him go to work with a nice little lead. You got to come in here, swing the bat and do it early. If they get a little momentum, then it’s game over.”
For six innings, Gil’s command gave him more of a fight than Red Sox hitters did. He flirted with history, but did not get a shot to finish it because, with four walks and plenty of deep counts — plus two wild pitches, one balk and four strikeouts — it took him 93 pitches to record 18 outs.
But overall, it was another encouraging sign from the pitcher who can be a difference-maker down the stretch if he throws enough strikes. His biggest escape act came in the fifth inning, when he walked the first two batters and advanced them on a balk, but retired the next three batters in order.
“He’s a little unpredictable, even for us sometimes,” manager Aaron Boone said with a chuckle. “Tonight was the best he’s looked [this season].”
The Red Sox broke up the combined no-hit bid with two outs in the seventh, when No. 8 hitter Nate Eaton drilled a first-pitch home run over the Green Monster off Fernando Cruz.
But the bullpen held strong from there, as Devin Williams worked around a leadoff single to retire the heart of the order in the eighth inning before David Bednar struck out a pair in the ninth for the save.
It helped that the Yankees created some late breathing room, thanks in part to the speed of José Caballero, who was starting a third straight game at shortstop over Anthony Volpe. He drilled a one-out, ground-rule double to right field before immediately stealing third. Then with the infield in, Ryan McMahon hit a grounder to second base where David Hamilton made a diving stab and fired home, but not in time to get Caballero, who scored to make it 3-0.
“He wreaks havoc on the bases,” Boone said. “He’s a little daring and makes you hold your breath sometimes. But he’s got a real good feel.”
One out later, the Red Sox intentionally walked Judge to bring up Rice against lefty reliever Justin Wilson. Rice won the left-on-left matchup, lining a single up the middle to put the Yankees ahead 4-0.
“Big-time [win], set the tone for the rest of the series,” Rice said. “It’s a big divisional race going on right now, so that was big.”
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
