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win as he continued to build confidence in his curveball. He allowed one earned run on three hits, walking two and striking out three.
“I thought he pitched well overall. I don’t think he had his greatest stuff. The fastball was a little down, but he’s still James Paxton. He’s still got a good fastball and breaking ball. I thought he was good,” Boone said. “He just didn’t have his electric stuff. It goes to show you that he can still go out there and pitch at a very high level even when he doesn’t have his best stuff necessarily, and really the only thing that kept him from going deeper in the game was that first inning where he racked up a bunch of pitches.”
Boone is encouraged that Paxton’s making this run at the right time.
“The pitch usage. I think physically, stuff ’s been there all year since returning from the IL… I think his confidence in his game plan, how he’s going to use his pitches. Having the equipment and the talent to go out there and pitch really well,” Boone said. “I feel like he’s in a really good place right now going down the stretch.”
The Yankees hope that they will have sluggers Giancarlo Stanton, Gary Sanchez and Edwin Encarnacion back in the lineup before the ALDS. Stanton is expected to join the Yankees for their final homestand next week, while Sanchez (groin strain) and Encarnacion (strained oblique) suffered injuries on Friday and Saturday.
But this 2019 Yankees have been all about being able to overcome injuries. A big part of that has been the surprisingly rejuvenated play of Gardner.
“Huge. He continues to have just a great year,” Boone said. “Obviously the home runs were huge, but at the time of the game, the play that he makes up on the fence kind of tilts the game a little different way. He just continues to play on both sides of the ball so well.”