Yankees Beat Twins 8-1 the Day After They Clinch a Playoff Spot for the 61st Time
The Yankees clinched a playoff spot with their win in Minnesota yesterday (technically, they clinched when Toronto lost). The Yankees won this game 8-1. Max Fried started for the Bombers, and Bailey Ober started for the Twins. The Bombers had a pitching advantage coming into this game, as Fried is good and Ober is big (6 foot 9), but not very good. He has a 4.41 earned run average.
It was Roberto Clemente Day across Major League Baseball. The Puerto Rican outfielder for the Pittsburgh Pirates had just recorded his 3,000th hit when he was killed in an off-season plane crash bringing relief supplies to earthquake victims in Venezuela. The humanitarian award in Major League Baseball is named after him. Carlos Rodon is the Yankee nominee for the award. Do you think he will win?
Yankees Against Twins Game Summary September 15
The Yankees were hoping the momentum they gathered from clinching a playoff spot would aid them in this game. They were also confident because they were starting Max Fried against Bailey Ober. Ober is big, but not very good. The Yankees had a decided pitching advantage in this game. Here is how the game played out.
In the first inning, Cody Bellinger gave the Yankees a 2-0 lead when he hit a two-run home run. Ben Rice scored. It was good to see the team jump out right away. Fans were worried they were hungover from their playoff cliching celebration.
In the second inning, Emilio Rodriguez singled, and Royce Lewis scored. That run cut the lead to 2-1. It was interesting that Lewis stole second base just prior. Fried had thrown over to first base twice. Base runners have stolen fewer than 5 bases against Fried, who has a great pickoff move to first base. In fact, he picked Rodriguez off first base.
In the third inning, George Lombard Jr. singled, and Heloit Ramos scored. The Yankees got that run back and led 3-1.
The Yankees scored four runs in the sixth inning. First, Heloit Ramos doubled, and Ben Rice scored. Then, Spencer Jones hit a three-run home run. Ramos and Luis Garcia Jr. scored. It was 7-1 Yankees.
In the ninth inning, Jose Caballero singled and George Lombard Jr. scored. That made it 8-1 Yankees. That was the final score of the game.
News and Notes
- Aaron Judge was held out of the lineup today.
- The Yankees clinched their 61st playoff berth last night. That is a record. The Dodgers, who clinched yesterday as well, will be making their 40th playoff appearance.
- Vote for Carlos Rodon to win the Roberto Clemente Award. He is the Nominee from the Yankees. He and his wife, Ashley, run a charity to support high-risk pregnancies. They say, “After a challenging journey, we’ve realized the prevalence of this often overshadowed issue. Leveraging our platform, we aim to raise awareness and funds for the foundation, offering hope to families seeking fertility treatments like IVF. We aspire to bring hope to numerous families who are praying for their miracle.
- Today is Roberto Clemente Day across baseball.
- Yankee outfielder Heloit Ramirez wears number 21 to honor Clemente. Ramos is from Puerto Rico like Clemente.
Frequently Asked Questions
The Yankees beat the Twins 8-1. The player of the game was Max Fried. He pitched seven innings in this game. He gave up six hits and only one run. He struck out six batters and walked no one. Honorable mention goes to Spencer Jones, who hit a three-run home run in this game. These two teams play the third game of this series tomorrow at 1:40.
Conclusion
The Twins are a bad baseball club. The Yankees won this game the day after they clinched a playoff spot. They held Aaron Judge out of the lineup, and they may have been a little hungover. However, they jumped out to an early lead in this game and just kept going. In the seventh inning, they had 12 hits. However, the Tampa Bay Rays won again. So, the Yankees’ win enabled them to just stay where they were. 4 back in the loss column.
