The Yankees were one strike from winning the game in nine innings, but allowed the game-tying run on a wild pitch, then failed to score in the 10th. The Orioles pushed across the game-winning run in the next frame, clinching a 3-2 win.
Here a few takeaways …
1. It was 2-1 entering the bottom of the ninth, when Baltimore’s DJ Stewart singled with one out and advanced on a wild pitch by Clay Holmes. He took third on a ground out, then took home on another wild pitch, tying the game and sending it to extras.
2. In the top of the 10th, the Yankees failed to even advance Brett Gardner to third. The Orioles then loaded and won on a walk-off single by Austin Hays.
3. Way back in the second inning, Joey Gallo‘s solo shot started the scoring. He now has three homers in his last four games, and just missed a three-run bomb in the fifth. Gio Urshela followed the homer up with an RBI double in the second to make it 2-0.
4. Jordan Montgomery was hardly perfect but managed to skate around trouble. He K’d 12 over 5.2 IP and allowed six hits, though he held the Orioles to 0-for-4 with RISP. Ryan Mountcastle‘s solo home run was Montgomery’s only blemish, though he was forced to settle for a no-decision.
5. According to ESPN, Nestor Cortes Jr. and Montgomery are the first Yankees to strikeout 11-plus batters in back-to-back starts.
6. In the seventh, Giancarlo Stanton hit a single with a 120.3-MPH exit velo which served as the third hardest hit ball in MLB all season. The second hardest was also hit by Stanton.
7. With the loss, the Yankees fell a half-game behind the idle Red Sox and Blue Jays for the first Wild Card spot.
Highlights
What’s next
The Yankees come back to the Bronx to host a three-game series with Cleveland. Corey Kluber will go for New York against Zach Plesac.