8 PAGES OF COVERAGE
Once again, Tanaka finds some more October mound magic
The big, bad wolf
Aaron Judge isn’t just a big man, he has become known for coming up big in the playoffs — including his latest tape-measure shot in the Yankees’ Game 2 win. JOEL SHERMAN, PAGE 96
The bet pays off
Gary Sanchez had been maligned all season for his poor defense and low batting average, but the Yankees catcher delivered when his team needed him most. MIKE VACCARO, PAGE 95
Worth the Price
Unlike beleaguered Red Sox lefty David Price, the Yanks’ Masahiro Tanaka has been a postseason star, and his performance Saturday solidified his sterling reputation.
B OSTON — Could there be a higher compliment for a pitcher in October than the one Masahiro Tanaka earned on Saturday night? He is the anti-Price. Struggling against the Red Sox this year? Searching for his splitter? October seems to cure all for the Yankees’ right-hander, who pitched the Yankees back into this American League Division Series with a 6-2 victory over the dangerous Red Sox and their postseason-averse starting pitcher David Price at Fenway Park. Tied at 1-1, the rivals resume action Monday night with Game 3 at Yankee Stadium, where the Yankees own a sevengame postseason winning streak.
Tanaka stabilized the Yankees’ status by allowing just a run and three hits over five innings, walking one and striking out four, and he now owns a 1.50 ERA in five postseason starts totaling 30 innings.
“I do think it helped me,” Tanaka said, through an interpreter, of his previous playoff success. “You kind of look back at that time and see what you did and go about today’s game.”
Back in early-to-mid September, Tanaka strung together a stretch of three straight excellent starts that put him in contention to start the AL wild-card game against the A’s. Then he faltered in his final two regular-season appearances, allowing a total of eight runs in eight innings and admitting that his bread-and-butter splitfinger fastball had taken an unscheduled vacation.
Throw in his 7.58 ERA in four starts against the Red Sox this season, including a 7.00 ERA in two starts here at Fenway, and you would’ve understood if panic emanated from Yankees universe after their club dropped Friday night’s series opener by a 5-4 margin.
Except that Tanaka has won himself quite a supply of credibility with this fan base, with this team, at this time. He only bolstered that on Saturday night.
“Masahiro was terrific,” Aaron Boone said. “Set the zone. Really efficient with his pitches. Mixing early. Command. The Red Sox, they do a really good job of putting the ball in play, and they can be a tough out, even when he’s got his split. But it was five strong innings for us to really set us up in a good position, and fortunately, we were able to add on once he got out of there.”
The game turned to the Yankees’ benefit in the seventh inning, when Gary Sanchez launched a 479-foot, three-run homer to increase the Yankees’ lead to 6-1. So while Tanaka pitched only with a lead, courtesy of Aaron Judge’s first-inning homer and then Sanchez’s homer and an Andrew McCutchen single in the second, he never enjoyed a very comfortable advantage, especially given the strength of the Red Sox’s lineup.
With the splitter back, however, Tanaka navigated his way through the minefield. As per The Post’s Joel Sherman, the Red Sox swung and missed on eight of Tanaka’s splitters.
“I feel like I was able to get the sound mechanics back to be able to get that effective splitter back,” said Tanaka, who explained the mechanical tweak revolved around his planting (left) leg.
Boone revealed afterward that he would have lifted Tanaka for Dellin Betances to go after Boston leadoff hitter Mookie Betts in the fifth if Betts had represented the tying run with the Yankees up 3-1. Instead, with the bases empty and two outs, Tanaka retired Betts for the third time, on a long flyout to center field. At 78 pitches, he had provided more than enough, and the Yankees’ bullpen continued its excellence by giving up one run in four innings. It must hearten the Yankees to know that, if this series goes the distance, Tanaka will be available on full rest to help in Game 5 Thursday night, be it as a starter or in relief of Game 1 starter J.A. Happ. Or, if they want to get greedy, Tanaka would be in the mix to start AL Championship Series Game 1 if the Yankees can maintain their home dominance and eliminate the Red Sox in four games. In our divided country, Yankees fans can unite and agree that, of everything “anti” out there, having the anti-Price on their side makes for an undisputedly positive development.