By Ethan Semendinger
April 1st, 2024
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The Yankees have already won the season series against the Astros. Today is the first day of April. This is fantastic!
Quick Stats -
Winning Pitcher: Nick Burdi (1-0, 0.00 ERA)
Losing Pitcher: Josh Hader (0-1, 3.00 ERA)
Save: Clay Holmes (3)
Home Runs (New York): None
Home Runs (Houston): Jose Altuve (1)
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Big Story - After three straight wins in Houston to start the season, it was clear this team was built differently. On Opening Day, the Yankees showed that they were willing to play small-ball in order to win. During game two, the Yankees showed that they are going to play the whole nine innings and not quit when ahead. In game three, the Yankees showed that they can win games by going for the long ball.
And, the Yankees aren't just winning because of their big names with the known big-names of Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton, and Gerrit Cole injured or not producing much, at all.
Instead, it's been a little bit of some holdovers like how Oswaldo Cabrera has refreshed his image with an amazing first three games. Or, how Anthony Volpe has started to show confidence at the plate. And, Anthony Rizzo is showing that he is no longer concussed.
And, it's also been the come-ups of the new guys to pinstripes (or, I guess, sweaty road grays). Juan Soto has already exceeded my expectations for how exciting of a player he is and he immediately made himself a fan-favorite as a personality and a player. Alex Verdugo has come up with some big defensive plays, a bunch of new relievers have been lights-out, and the whole feeling of the team is promising and new.
Last year, the Yankees were too home run happy. They seemed to give-up at the end of games. They were boring to watch (though we watched anyway) and they lacked the "X-Factor".
What a difference four games has made. I think I'm gonna love the 2024 Yankees.
Here was the line-up for yesterdays Easter matinee:
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Player(s) of the Game -
Juan Soto: 3-5, RBI (Go-Ahead in the 9th), 1 K
Notable Performances -
Clarke Schmidt: 5.1 IP, 7 H, 3 R (3 ER), 0 BB, 5 K's
Caleb Ferguson: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K
Nick Burdi: 0.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K, WIN!
Clay Holmes: 1.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K's
Gleyber Torres: 1-4, 2 Runs, 1 BB, 1 SB
Anthony Rizzo: 2-4, Run
Jon Berti: 1-4, RBI, 2 K's
Jose Trevino: 1-4, RBI, 1 K
Better to Forget -
Aaron Judge: 0-4, RBI, 2 K's
Jonathan Loaisiga: 1.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K
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The Game - All around the offense, the team looks different, and I believe this is for the better. They seem to be less focused on trying to get the "big hit" and instead on just getting a hit. They are mostly willing to work long counts and not just swing at the first pitch. They have a confidence about them.
Yesterday, Clarke Schmidt pitched a great first 5 innings, making just one big mistake as Jose Altuve hit a home run in the 3rd. Unfortunately, the Astros started to hit him a bit in the 6th inning and he ended up with 3 runs earned against him when all was said and done. Overall, I would say that this was a solid start and exactly what was needed out of a back-end rotation guy. If Clarke Schmidt can give the Yankees a good 5-6 innings each start, they'll be in a great spot.
As for the game, the Yankees got on the board first off some great small-ball being played. Giancarlo Stanton hustled out a double in the 2nd, Alex Verdugo got him to third on a long fly-ball out to center, and then Jose Trevino got him in on a 2-out bloop pop-up that Jon Singleton was unable to field cleanly. A similar story happened in the 4th. Anthony Rizzo legged out a double before newcomer Jon Berti (in his Yankees debut) came up with a 2-out RBI single to get Rizzo in from second. In the 5th, the Yankees got their 3rd run through a Oswaldo Cabrera walk, Juan Soto single (advancing the runner to third), and a sacrifice fly off the bat of Aaron Judge.
The excitement and the plays were the biggest in the 9th. After giving up two quick outs in the top of the 9th, Gleyber Torres came up with a big single, got a huge lead and easily stole second before Juan Soto came up with a super clutch, super level, opposite field hit, to bring him in.
In the bottom of the 9th, the Astros immediately got two runners on with back-to-back singles. This brought up Jose Altuve, who nearly won the game...if not for Jon Berti making a great play at the hot corner to get the lead runner. A long fly-out to Judge came next. And then, Alex Verdugo made his second great defensive play of the series to bring in the final out of the game on a slide.
YANKEES WIN! YANKEES WIN THE SEASON SERIES AGAINST THE ASTROS! YANKEES SWEEP THE ASTROS!
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Next Up - The Yankees (4-0) start a new series against the Arizona Diamondbacks (3-1) tonight with a game starting at 9:40 PM on YES. It will be the first appearance for Luis Gil (a stand-out pitcher in 2022 who missed last season due to injury) as he goes against Ryne Nelson. The Diamondbacks come off a 4-game home series against the Colorado Rockies.
