The New York Yankees defeated the Kansas City Royals 4-3 on Wednesday night to finish a three-game sweep at Yankee Stadium in a game that was characterized by timely hits, lockdown bullpen, and a burst of defensive genius. The attention was stolen by Aaron Judge and Fernando Cruz, and then some.
The difference was made in the seventh inning when Judge, who is now hitting stats right out of a video game, blasted a go-ahead single homer. He went 3-for-3 with a walk and reached base four times, increasing his OPS to an incredible 1.322 and his MLB-best hitting average to.409. Since April 4, it was his first home run.
Judge remarked after the game about Cruz, who made a valiant two-inning bullpen save, “That’s why we got him.” “He entered and closed the door.”
Cruz recorded his first career save while preserving a battered bullpen, despite his tense seventh and eighth innings. Regarding Judge, Cruz remarked, “He’s superhuman.” “You simply wait for him to show up. He does it.
Cody Bellinger’s game-saving, full-extension catch in right field on MJ Melendez’s slicing liner ended the game with a runner on second in the ninth with the game hanging in the balance. It was a fitting conclusion to a game that was full of grit and clutch play.
Judge remarked of Bellinger’s game-ending grab, “There’s a reason why he’s got gold on his glove.” “Very few people, especially during a significant event like that, make that catch.”
Yankees complete the sweep of the Royals
After the game, Yankees manager Aaron Boone was beaming, particularly about Judge’s intensely concentrated night at the plate. “I’ve never felt more locked in than he did tonight; he was on everything at bat.”
Salvador Perez drove in a run in the first off of rookie Clarke Schmidt, putting the Yankees behind early. However, Schmidt eventually found a groove and retired 11 straight after experiencing some early rust. Before handing it off to the bullpen, he gave up three runs in five and a third innings.
Anthony Volpe, who started the game in a 2-for-23 slump, was relieved when the Yankees’ offense responded in the third inning with a two-run double. In the fourth inning, Bellinger, who was himself in a 5-for-43 slump, scored a run with an RBI double.
In the fifth, Kansas City rallied to tie the score 3-3, but Judge came through once more. In the seventh inning, he hit his seventh home run of the year, smashing a sinker from John Schreiber into the right-center bullpen. The Yankees would never fall behind again.
After getting four important outs in relief, Mark Leiter Jr. sent the ball to Cruz, who calmly and forcefully ended the game.
The Yankees finished a 4-2 homestand with momentum and advanced to 11-7 before traveling to Tampa. The Bronx Bombers are starting to appear scary with Judge swinging the hottest bat in baseball, the bullpen performing well under duress, and the defense displaying Gold Glove moments.
