By Derek McAdam
April 10, 2024
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The New York Yankees defeated the Miami Marlins by a score of 3-2 last night, winning their fourth straight game and improving to 10-2 on the young season, while the Marlins dropped to 1-11.
Quick Stats: W: Carlos Rodon (1-0): 6+ IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 6 K
L: AJ Puk: 4.2 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 5 BB, 2 K
S: Clay Holmes (5): 1 IP, 1 K
Big Story: The Yankees came into Tuesday night’s game looking to secure their fourth series victory in as many attempts through the young season. Alex Verdugo kicked off the scoring for the Yankees in the bottom of the 2nd, with a solo home run to right field to give New York a 1-0 lead. In the subsequent innings, the Yankees barely missed two-run home runs from both Giancarlo Stanton and Anthony Volpe, either of which could have busted the game open. However, Stanton needed another foot on his fly ball and Volpe needed another inch or two (literally) that would’ve hit the foul pole for a home run.
However, Stanton would redeem himself in the 5th by slapping an RBI double down the right field line to score Juan Soto. In the next inning, Soto then drove home Jon Berti with an RBI single up the middle to give the Yankees a 3-0 lead.
Following up Nestor Cortes Jr.’s eight inning start on Monday, Rodon came in and delivered a solid performance of his own. He got into a little trouble in the 7th after he walked Josh Bell to lead off the inning, which was then followed by an error from Anthony Rizzo and an infield single from Tim Anderson to load the bases. Ian Hamilton came in relief of Rodon, and the Marlins were able to score their first runs of the series on a groundout to first base, as well as a sacrifice fly from Nick Gordon, which made the score 3-2.
Hamilton was able to keep the Marlins off the board in the 8th, while Holmes delivered a 1-2-3 9th inning to notch his fifth save out of six attempts this season.
Player of the Game: I’m going to give this honor to Rodon. He pitched a very good game, and while it was against a struggling Marlins teams, these are games that the Yankees are taking advantage of. Cortes gave them the best start from any Yankee starter this season on Monday night, and Rodon followed him up with another solid start, although it wasn’t as good as Cortes’.
Notable Performances: Soto continues to deliver for the Yankees. He is managing to get on base, whether that be via walks or getting a big hit like he did in the 6th. Stanton is also looking very good at the plate. As mentioned above, he just missed a home run in the 3rd, but he also hit the ball very hard in the 6th for an out. I’m not a huge fan of exit velocities, but it’s good to see him hit the ball well over the past few games.
Better to Forget: The Marlins are probably wanting to forget this altogether. They were able to pick up their first win of the season on Sunday, but have failed to build any momentum since then. I have no doubt that avoiding a series sweep would be a huge confidence boost for the entire team.
My Take: It wasn’t the prettiest of games, but the Yankees found a way to win. Rodon set the tone early in the game for the Yankees with a relatively quick couple of innings to start, similarly to Cortes. While the Yankees didn’t necessarily need him to give them length, it was nice that he gave it to them anyways. Sure, they’re playing the Marlins, a team that just can’t find its footing throughout the young season. But these are teams that they should be taking advantage of and winning games against.
One person that I haven’t mentioned in the game review is Aaron Judge, whose numbers may be slightly misleading. His batting average isn’t incredible, but he leads the team in walks and had three last night. I'm not worried about Judge’s poor batting average to start the season simply for that reason. With Stanton starting to hit better and Rizzo even throwing in some hits here and there, pitchers may quickly learn that it may not be the best strategy to walk Judge, especially if Soto is already on base.
Overall, I’m glad to see the Yankees continue to find a way to win games and get some early momentum in the season, especially with how these finished last year. Now, it’s time to go for the series sweep.
What’s Next?: As mentioned above, the Yankees will go for the series sweep tonight. Ryan Weathers is scheduled to start for the Marlins, while Marcus Stroman is set to start for the Yankees. First pitch is set for 7:05 p.m. EST from Yankee Stadium. Following the game, the Yankees will have an off-day on Thursday before they head to Cleveland for a three-game series.
