DOING IT ALL

Hicks HR, assist lead Yankees’ furious rally

YANKEES 5 RED SOX 4

For most of Friday night, the Yankees seemed destined to fall a season-high 5½ games out of first place, while the Red Sox seemed poised to win their ninth straight and take an even firmer hold on the AL East.

Then, Aaron Hicks took over the game.

In just his second game back from an oblique injury that cost him more than a month, Hicks blasted a tworun homer that sparked a five-run rally in the eighth and then made a terrific throw to get Eduardo Nunez at third base in the ninth to bail out Aroldis Chapman.

In the end, the Yankees held on for a 5-4 win to open a crucial three-game series against the Red Sox in front of a sellout crowd of 46,509 in The Bronx.

“We need any win we can get against these guys,” Hicks said.

That’s especially true because the teams meet nine more times before Labor Day.

The fact the Yankees remain alive in the division is due largely to their success against Boston. With Friday’s win, they are now 7-3 against their rivals — a record that did not seem likely when the bottom of the eighth began.

The Yankees trailed 3-0 before pinch-hitter Brett Gardner was hit by a pitch by former Met Addison Reed. Hicks followed with a homer that just reached the seats in right.

“We had two hits all night and we weren’t putting anything together,” said Todd Frazier, who gave the Yan- kees the lead later in the inning with a single. “I don’t know how he kept it fair, but it kick-started us.” Hicks’ blast — such as it was — energized a Yankees team that had been blanked in Toronto on Thursday and was 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position through seven innings.

Gary Sanchez delivered a single to left and Aaron Judge walked, forcing Boston manager John Farrell to go to hardthrowing righthander Joe Kelly to face Didi Gregorius, who tied the game with a single to leftcenter that scored Sanchez.

Frazier then dropped a single in front of Andrew Benintendi in left to put the Yankees ahead.

Ronald Torreyes’ sacrifice fly gave the Yankees a 5-3 lead, which proved to be significant when Chapman walked the bases loaded to start the ninth.

With Dellin Betances warming in the bullpen, Chapman got Benintendi to fly to left. Jackie Bradley Jr. scored from third, but Hicks made a strong throw to Frazier to get Nunez, who was trying to advance from second.

After a review, the play stood and the Yankees — and Chapman — had a much-needed double play.

Chapman then got Mitch Moreland, hitting in Hanley Ramirez’s spot after replacing him at first base in the seventh, to fly to center to end the game.

“It’s the play that saved the game,” Chapman said through an interpreter of Hicks’ throw. “It helped me relax and helped me to get through that inning.”

Jaime Garcia, in his second outing since being acquired from Minnesota before the trade deadline, gave up three runs in 5 2/3 innings.

Adam Warren tossed 2 ¹/3 scoreless innings in relief of Garcia before giving way to Chapman, who hadn’t pitched in a week.

Even after Chapman walked the bases full, manager Joe Girardi said he remained confident.

“You still feel pretty good about him because he is a strikeout guy,” Girardi said. “He was a little rusty.”

Fortunately for the Yankees, Hicks wasn’t.

Afterward, Nunez stood by his decision to run.

“If it happened tomorrow, I would take the chance tomorrow again,” Nunez said. “That’s how you play the game. That was a great throw, that was a great pick by Frazier and he made the tag. You have to give credit to them.” Girardi agreed. “He’s always been an aggressive player and he makes things happen,” said Girardi, who managed Nunez in his first four major league seasons. “More times than not, teams benefit from his aggressiveness. Tonight, it cost him. He ran on a really good arm.”