Voit, Ursela power Yankees
YANKEES 12 METS 5
NEW YORK — A year ago this week, Luke Voit was demoted to Double-A by the St.
Louis Cardinals. Now he’s vying for an All-Star selection and a spot in the Home Run Derby.
“It’s crazy, man,” he said after his tiebreaking threerun homer off Zack Wheeler in a five-run fourth inning led the New York Yankees over the Mets 12-5 Tuesday in the opener of a day-night Subway Series
doubleheader.
Voit has 30 home runs in
102 games since the Yankees acquired him from St. Louis last July 28 for pitchers Chasen Shreve and Giovanny Gallegos. The
28-year-old took over at first base from the repeatedly injured Greg Bird and has
16 homers this year. He is the leader at his position in the first results of fan voting for All-Star starters.
“This team is giving me a lot of confidence to go out and do my job every day,” he said. “It’s just having fun in the locker room. I never feel like I’m a deadbeat.”
Gio Urshela hit a tying, two-run homer in the fourth, had four RBIs and was a triple short of the cycle, ending a stretch of 15 at-bats without a hit.
Gary Sanchez had three RBIs and tied for the AL lead with his 20th home run, a two-run drive against Tim Peterson in the eighth.
Masahiro Tanaka (4-5) gave up a three-run homer to Jeff McNeil that put the Mets ahead 4-1 in the third but rebounded to win for the first time in a month.
Third baseman Todd Frazier made a throwing error on a two-out grounder in the fourth. After a walk, Voit’s homer on a slider put the Yankees ahead. The Yankees made three errors and the Mets two.
“It’s on me. The end of that inning is on me,” Frazier said.
Pitching on six days’ rest after the birth of his daughter Friday and the rainout, Tanaka allowed five runs — four earned — and seven hits in 62⁄3 innings.
Wheeler (5-4) gave up a career-high nine runs — five earned — and 10 hits in
4 2/3 innings. Coming off a five-hit shutout of San Francisco, he has not won consecutive starts this year, and his 13 home runs allowed are one shy of his
2018 total.
“My slider wasn’t very good today. The changeup wasn’t really working,” Wheeler said. “The fastball was about the only thing
going for me.”
TRAINER’S ROOM
Mets: 2B Robinson Cano (left quadriceps), OF Brandon Nimmo (neck) and LHP Justin Wilson (left elbow) were to play for Triple-A Syracuse against Charlotte. … RHP Noah Syndergaard left before the opener because of strep throat.
Yankees: RHP Dellin Betances strained his lat muscle while pitching to batters in a simulated game on Friday and won’t throw for a few weeks, manager Aaron Boone said. … OFDH Giancarlo Stanton went 2 for 4 with a solo home run as the DH for Class A Tampa in a doubleheader opener.
UP NEXT
Mets: RHP Jacob deGrom
(3-6) starts Thursday when the Mets open a homestand against St. Louis and RHP Jack Flaherty (4-3). Yankees: LHP J.A. Happ
(6-3) is likely to start Thursday’s series opener at the Chicago White Sox.