Yanks Win 3-1 Over Phillies

By Andrew Hefner

July 26, 2026

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The Big Story

The New York Yankees took the field at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia following one of their best wins of the season and, despite a rough start to the game, took care of business in another tight win versus the Phillies. Ryan Weathers worked out of trouble in the first inning and cruised through 5.2 innings of work to set up a 3-1 Yankees win with the chance for a sweep on Sunday Night Baseball. 

The Phillies started former Yankees relief pitcher Tim Mayza as the first hand up in what was a bullpen game for Philadelphia. Mayza cruised through two innings of no-hit ball before his time was up for the night. 

Weathers got the ball for the Yankees and struggled heavily in the first, allowing a run on a Bryce Harper sacrifice fly that came as a result of a leadoff hit by pitch, followed by a Kyle Schwarber double. Weathers got two straight outs to follow, but New York had already found themselves down early with an offense that has been struggling. 

The first hit of the game for the Yankees also scored the first run as Austin Wells deposited a solo home run into the right field bleachers off of MLB debutant Brian Keller. Keller was originally taken in the 39th round of the 2016 MLB draft by the Yankees and even climbed his way to AAA within the New York organization before departing. 

Weathers began to steady after his rough first inning and cruised through his next few innings of work with little issue. He had only pitched five complete innings of work only once in his last four starts before Saturday, and departed after 5.2 innings. 

While the bullpen went to work, the Yankees' offense began to get going again, and the tie was finally broken in the sixth as Cody Bellinger ripped a single that would score Austin Wells, who reached earlier in the inning on a walk. Bellinger also doubled in the eighth but left the game after an awkward slide into second. 

The third and final run of the game came an inning later in the seventh via a moonshot by Jason Dominguez to add the final insurance run needed for the Yankees.

The Yankees' bullpen has been on point as of late, and the first-inning run would be the last for the Phillies as young flamethrower Angel Chivilli got the final out of the sixth after Weathers exited, before Paul Blackburn worked through two scoreless innings and Bednar picked up his second straight save. 

An area of controversy was also once again sparked around Jose Caballero as he dropped a line drive at short midway through the game that, by being dropped, allowed Caballero to pick up a double play by stepping on second/tagging the runner. The umpire ruled the dropping of the ball to be “intentional” and stripped the double play, only leading to the batter being called out. Aaron Boone and Caballero were both understandably upset already with officiating following his pitch clock debacle and rule change earlier this week, and a lengthy discussion was had at second base with the umpire crew and the parties involved. 

Player of the Game

I think that because of his clutch hitting and the fact that when he does actually hit the ball, it makes an impact, I will hesitantly give player of the game to Austin Wells for his offensive and defensive contributions. Perhaps this game was a sign of things to come (who am I kidding…). 

Final Line: 1-2, HR, BB, R, RBI

Notable Performances 

Paul Goldschmidt: 2-4

Cody Bellinger: 2-4, RBI

Jasson Dominguez, 1-4, HR, RBI

David Bednar: 1 IP, Save

Paul Blackburn: 2 IP

Ryan Weathers: 5.2 IP, 1 ER, 6 H, 1 BB, 7 K

Better to Forget

Ben Rice: 0-4, 2 K

Jazz Chisholm: 0-4, 4 K (Golden Sombrero!)

Trent Grisham: 0-4

Ryan McMahon: 0-3, K

My Take 

I am so happy with how this team looks, which, all things considered, is a pretty insane statement considering they have scored 4 combined runs across two games. The offense is still abysmal for the most part, and I really do understand that, but the pitching staff can not go unnoticed. The Yankees as a team have the lowest combined starting and relief pitching ERA of any team in baseball, which is an incredible testament to the depth they have and the development that Matt Blake has achieved at all levels of the game. Specifically, Angel Chivilli and Paul Blackburn were both projects of Blake over the last season as they were acquired, and both have become key pieces for the Yankees out of the bullpen just this month. Blackburn is in the best stretch of his career and has not allowed a run in 14 out of 15 appearances, and not to mention the fact that David Bednar has been lights out, and he's right behind these other guys night in and night out. 

The fact that some are saying to trade the trade capital that the Yankees hold, like George Lombard or Spencer Jones, for a rental like Mason Miller for the bullpen is an insult to the work this pitching staff is putting in during a time of crisis for the offense. Focus on a catcher; there are plenty out there that are a great fit, not to mention that there are multiple middle infielders on the market ready to make a difference for this lineup. If the Yankees end up making it to a wildcard series in October, this pitching staff in its current form will be the reason they win the series. 

The sweep is needed tomorrow. The Phillies are a strong club, and the Yankees need to get into a groove in the second half, still just a couple of games out of first place. 

Next Up

The Yankees will look to sweep the Phillies on the road on NBC Sunday Night Baseball, with the first pitch coming at 7:20. Will Warren for the Yankees and Christopher Sanchez for the Phillies are the probable starters.