With elimination game, Yankees in familiar spot
After Houston win, Sabathia welcomes chance in clincher.
HOUSTON — The New York Yankees needed to win one more elimination game to get to their first World Series since 2009.
This time, the Baby Bombers played a Game 7 after missing a chance to close out the AL Championship Series against the Houston Astros.
“I guess it just didn’t feel right,” Yankees third baseman Todd Frazier said. “We’ve got to play with our backs against the wall again and see what happens.”
Luis Severino had another abbreviated start in Houston and Aaron Judge struck out two more times to match a major league record for strikeouts in a postseason before a towering home run in the Yankees’ 7-1 loss in Game 6 on Friday night.
New York had veteran lefthander CC Sabathia on the mound for Game 7 on Saturday night. Sabathia, reliever David Robertson and left fielder Brett Gardner are the only holdovers from the Yankees’ last World Series team eight years ago — in Joe Girardi’s second season as their manager. Sabathia went into the game 10-0 in starts following a loss this year, including Game 3 of the ALCS.
“That’s why it’s special to pitch and play in October,” said Sabathia, who got a no decision after starting a winner-take-all Division Series clincher in Cleveland. “It will feel good to get out there tomorrow and have an opportunity to try to pitch this team to the World Series.”
With a series lead for the first time this postseason after winning all three ALCS games in the Bronx, the Yankees were again stifled by Justin Verlander — just like in Game 2. The big right-hander didn’t go the distance this time, but he did get his ninth win in nine appearances since being acquired by Houston.
“Verlander was making his pitches, doing what he was doing,” Judge said. “We’ve got a Game 7. … What an opportunity. We wouldn’t want it any other way.”
It was the first Game 7 for the Yankees since the 2004 ALCS, when the Red Sox came back to claim the AL pennant after losing the first three games in that series.
The Yankees had not lost when facing elimination this postseason. After beating Minnesota in the winor-go-home AL wild-card game, New York lost the first two games in the best-offive ALDS against Cleveland before winning three straight to advance.
“It’s a situation that our guys have been in a lot,” Girardi said. “I think you have to keep tonight’s game in perspective. We still have a shot to do what we want to try to do.”
Judge’s third homer of this series — he hit two in New York — was a soaring shot off reliever Brad Peacock in the eighth projected to 425 feet by Statcast.
But in his other three at-bats, Judge grounded into a double play and struck out twice. That’s 26 strikeouts this postseason for the rookie slugger, matching the record set by Alfonso Soriano while with the Yankees in 2003.
Severino got into trouble against the bottom half of the Astros order in the fifth. After No. 6 batter Alex Bregman walked to lead off, Evan Gattis drew a one-out walk and No. 9 batter Brian McCann got his first hit in the ALCS with a ground-rule double that drove in the first run.
George Springer then drew a walk, and Jose Altuve ended an 0-for-12 slide with a tworun single that made it 3-0 and chased Severino.