The Yankees got more revenge on the Houston Astros, beating them on Saturday, 1-0.
Here are the takeaways…
1. Gerrit Cole was dealing against his former team, retiring the first nine batters he faced. He walked the first two batters in the fourth inning, but struck out Yuli Gurriel and got Yordan Alvarez to ground into a 4-6-3 double play to end Houston’s first threat of the night. The Astros didn’t get their first hit until the fifth inning, and Cole didn’t allow another one until the seventh.
Aroldis Chapman was getting loose in the ninth to face the top of the lineup, but it was a bluff, and Cole went for the complete game shutout. Jose Altuve led off the ninth with a first-pitch single, but Michael Brantley flew out after a 10-pitch battle and struck out Gurriel after a questionable check swing. Aaron Boone came to visit with Cole, who emotionally convinced him to stay in the game. It worked – Cole struck out Alvarez to end the game.
It was without a doubt his best start since the sticky stuff crackdown, and maybe even the year. In the shutout, he allowed just five baserunners (three hits, two walks) and struck out 12 – his most in over a month. His 129 pitches were the most by any pitcher this year.
2. In the second inning, the Yankees had runners on first and second with one out, but the struggling Brett Gardner popped out, and Kyle Higashioka flew out to end the threat. But in the third, Aaron Judge took Zack Greinke 416 feet deep for his 21st homer of the year to put the Yanks up 1-0. And with it, he threw some shade at Altuve.
3. In the eighth inning, DJ LeMahieu extended his on-base streak to 26 games. In that span, he is also hitting .315 (34-for-108) with an .856 OPS. But with runners on first and second, on a 3-0 count, Giancarlo Stanton grounded into an inning-ending double play to keep it a 1-0 game.
What’s next?
The Yankees will wrap up their series with the Astros, and the first half, on Sunday at 2:10 p.m. in Houston.
Jameson Taillon will go for the sweep for the Yankees, while the Astros will return with Framber Valdez.