The hurts - & wins - keep on coming
FOR those old enough to remember the 1996 Yankees and Mariano Duncan’s T-shirted slogan: “We play today, we win today, das it,” maybe their 2019 successors just need a mild tweak? “We play today, we get hurt today, we win today, das it.” That’s plenty, though, isn’t it? The Yankees capped a weekend of mixed emotions in fitting fashion Sunday night at Yankee Stadium, defeating the Red Sox, 7-4, to complete a four-game sweep and put their rivals back a startling 14 ½ games back in the AL East (the second-place Rays are eight games out). They did not accomplish this feat, however, without even more injuries. Gleyber Torres departed in the eighth inning with what Aaron Boone called “a core issue” that required testing, and the Yankees manager’s refusal to delve any deeper into that matter should send shivers through your spine if you’re a fan, though Torres’ father later posted on Twitter that his son is OK and expects to travel with the team to Baltimore. And in a second situation that played out more publicly yet appears to have a more palatable conclusion, Gio Urshela fouled balls off both his right knee and his left shin during his sixth-inning atbat, prompting the team trainer to check on him twice. While the third baseman stayed in the game through the eighth, he departed, as well, in the top of the ninth. “I think I’m going to be good,” vowed Urshela, who announced his intention to join his teammates on their early-morning flight to Balti
more. Boone said that X-rays on Urshela were negative.
If the Yankees suffer any more medical drama, they’ll just morph right into an episode of “ER.” On Saturday, after all, they lost a pair of players to the injured list, Edwin Encarnacion fracturing his right wrist and Aaron Hicks straining his flexor, the latter considered good news since Hicks didn’t tear a ligament.
“It’s been a crazy year that way, with the amount of things that has happened to guys physically,” Boone said. “It’s also been something been a real rallying cry for us. I think it has not just brought level of physical toughness to the room, but it’s forced guys to be mentally tough, as well.
“I think part of the hunger that exists with those guys is because they have the mindset that nothing is going to get in our way and nothing is going to stop us.”
For Exhibit A, Boone could submit the Yankees’ extraordinary, third-inning, sixth-run rally Sunday night against Red Sox starter David Price. With Judge on first courtesy of a walk and the Yankees owning a 1-0 lead (on Judge’s first-inning solo homer), here’s what transpired:
Two-run homer by Urshela, who began the season with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
Double by Brett Gardner, whom the Yankees re-signed last winter with the intention of making him a part-time player.
RBI double by Cameron Maybin, who began the season with the Indians’ Triple-A affiliate in Columbus.
RBI single by Mike Ford, who began the season alongside Urshela in Scranton.
Double by Kyle Higashioka, yet another RailRider on Opening Day.
Two-run single by Mike Tauchman, whom the Yankees acquired in a trade with the Rockies on March 23.
Just like that, through the work of the Yankees’ Misfit Toys, they held a commanding 7-0 lead, one that turned less commanding yet didn’t break.
Count that as six batters, no outs, no-names (OK, besides Gardner).
“That’s the coolest thing about this team: No one’s trying to take a load on themselves,” Judge said. “Everyone’s trying to pass the baton and share their responsibility. If I do my job, I know the guy behind me is going to do his job.”
The big question, of course, concerns the Yankees’ postseason performance. Can their admittedly impressive resilience mitigate their compromised talent base, not to mention the work of art that is the Houston Astros?
How much character, how much adversity overcome, does one sports team need? The Yankees seem determined to find out.