The New York Yankees just absolutely stomped the Boston Red Sox 9-2 on Wednesday night, completing a two-game AL Wild Card Series sweep that sends Boston packing for the second year in a row. It was a brutal display for Red Sox fans, seeing their team eliminated by the Yanks in the first round yet again, and for Yankees fans, well, it’s party time in the Bronx. This win punches New York’s ticket straight to the AL Division Series.
Fried Shuts Down Boston, Again
Dude, what a performance from Max Fried. He straight-up dominated Boston in the playoffs for the second straight year. He pitched three-hit ball over six innings, totally stifling the Red Sox lineup, striking out six, and walking just one batter. It was a masterclass. Fried allowed just one run over 12 1/3 innings across these two Wild Card Series matchups against the Red Sox. You gotta remember, this guy hadn’t won a postseason game since the 2021 World Series clincher with Atlanta, so this was a huge moment for him and the team. Coming off Cam Schlittler leading them to a 9-0 shutout in Game 1, Fried kept that momentum rolling hard. The Yankees even threw a curveball at Sonny Gray, starting eight left-handed hitters against him.
The Sixth-Inning Explosion That Sealed It
While Fried was doing his thing, the Yankees’ bats came alive big time, especially in that wild sixth inning. Cody Bellinger and Luis Garcia Jr. both smashed homers, with Bellinger picking up a massive four RBIs on the night, including a three-run blast in the sixth. Garcia, who was a trade deadline pickup, had three hits in his first postseason start, which is just unreal in that kind of pressure.
The game was tight at 2-1 after Willson Contreras homered for Boston, which actually snapped their crazy 26-inning postseason scoreless streak. But then the Yankees just blew it wide open with a six-run sixth. It started with Spencer Jones reaching on a wild pitch after striking out leading off, and they even needed a video review for that one to confirm it. Jones then swiped second and went to third on a throwing error, setting up the scoring. Rookie George Lombard Jr. got his first postseason RBI with a single, Jazz Chisholm Jr. singled, and Trent Grisham loaded the bases with a bunt single. Austin Wells got an RBI sac fly, Ryan McMahon hit an RBI groundout, and then Ben Rice, who absolutely tore it up in Game 1 with four hits and six RBIs, was intentionally walked. That brought up Bellinger, who went down and pulled a changeup into the right-center field seats for that monster three-run homer, making it 8-1. That whole inning had everything: a wild pitch, a throwing error, a stolen base, a bunt single, an intentional walk, and a dinger. Talk about chaos!
Boston’s October Heartbreak Continues
For Boston, this series was a nightmare. They hit a miserable .117 (just 7 for 60) with 18 strikeouts in the two games and got absolutely smoked, outscored 18-2. They made the playoffs after a tough 32-46 start to the season, which is a hell of a rebound, but it just wasn’t enough to get past their rivals. Getting eliminated by the Yankees in the first round for the second straight year has gotta sting big time. Nick Sogard did manage a solo homer off Fried, but that was just a blip in an otherwise dominant performance by New York.
So, what’s next? The Yankees are now set to face the AL East champion Tampa Bay in an AL Division Series. That series kicks off on Saturday, and you know New York is gonna be fired up after this sweep.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Fox Sports.
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