Cleveland Indians Beat New York Yankees With 9-8 In 13 innings To Take 2-0 Series Lead
Yan Gomes singled home Austin Jackson from the 2nd base without any out in the 13th inning as Cleveland Indians rallied from 5 runs down to stun the New York Yankees 9-8 on Friday and grab a 2-0 lead in the AL Division Series.
Regardless of an atrocious begin by ace Corey Kluber, losing slugger Edwin Encarnacion with a seriously sprained ankle in the first and facing the opportunity of playing their final game at home, the Indians, with some assist from a call that went their way, continued a charmed season growing increasingly more special by the day.
“The tendency of this team is to never surrender,” Kluber stated. “Even if we were down 8-3, we didn’t agree with the game was over. We never feel like we’re out of a game.”
Jackson drew a leadoff walk in the 13th from Dellin Betances and stole second. Gomes went to a complete count before pulling his bouncer just off the third-base bag, easily scoring Jackson and touching off some other one of these wild celebrations inside a progressive field, where the Indians were so properly while running away with their division and winning 22 directly at one point.
As Jackson sprinted home, Cleveland Indians’ players anesthetized of the dugout and mobbed Gomes at the finish of a wild, 5-hour, 8-minute thriller that featured 14 pitchers and a call that can haunt Yankees manager Joe Girardi for months. “We just were purported to win,” said Indians outfielder Jay Bruce, who hit a game-tying homer in the 8th. “No words, actually. I’m speechless.”
Francisco Lindor hit a grand slam in the 6th to rally Cleveland Indians, a good way to strive for a sweep in Game 3 Sunday at Yankee Stadium. Carlos Carrasco will start for the Cleveland Indians against Masahiro Tanaka, who will try to expand new york’s season.
The Yankees had their possibilities overdue, however, they stranded the go-ahead run at third in the 9th and 10th — and had pinch-runner Ronald Torreyes picked off second in the eleventh through Gomes from the behind the plate. Josh Tomlin, who was scheduled to begin later in the series, pitched two best innings for the win as manager Terry Francona ran out of relievers in a game started by his great pitcher.
Aaron Hicks hit a 3-run homer off Kluber and Gary Sanchez and Greg bird hit two-run pictures for the Yankees, who may have caught a bad break before Lindor’s homer. New York’s Aaron judge went 0 for 3 and is hitless in seven at-bats in the series with 5 strikeouts.
The Yankees lost consecutive games for the first time because they had been swept at home in a 3-game series by the Indians from Aug. 28-30. Now, they want to sweep 3 in a row from Cleveland Indians. Down 8-3, facing New York’s vaunted bullpen, the Indians came back.
New York starter CC Sabathia was lifted with one on and one out in the 6th for Chad green, some other one of the Yankees’ flame-throwers, who got an out before Gomes doubled. Green threw a pitch inside and Lonnie Chisenhall was awarded first via plate umpire Dan Iassogna on a hit by pitch.
TV replays confirmed that the ball slightly changes direction — it appeared to hit the knob of Chisenhall’s bat. Girardi said there was not enough proof within 30 seconds to justify a challenge. He said the team later saw a slow-motion replay suggesting he must’ve contested the call, however it was too late.
“There was nothing that told us he was not hit by the pitch,” Girardi said. New York catcher Gary Sanchez said he heard something, but was not certain what. Sanchez stuck the pitch on a fly — it might have been strike three if it was ruled a foul tip — and immediately pointed to the Yankees dugout, indicating they should consider challenging the call.
Girardi nodded and held up a finger, asking for time to come to a decision. “I didn’t assume it hit him, because he never reacted,” Sanchez said through a translator. “He stood there. but it’s just stuff that occurs in the game.” Lindor when stepped in and hit a towering shot off the inside of the right-field foul pole to make it 8-7.
