The two historic franchises are playing three games at Yankee Stadium. They were waiting by the dugout on Friday afternoon, taking in the scene along with one of Williamson’s brothers. This is not a shakeup in light of the losing streak. The Giants won 2-1, getting a win for the first time since July 10.
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“The only thing you can do in this game is create opportunities, and we’ve been doing that”, Bochy said.
The Yankees took advantage of Williamson’s mistake to score a run in the fourth.
Bochy might as well have been speaking for his whole team. “Obviously, we haven’t done well this road trip, myself especially”. They nearly overcame an eight-run deficit against the Red Sox.
Saturday’s game got off to another ugly start.
Reyes’ second triple since being activated on July 5 drove in the game’s first run.
Carlos Beltran continued his strong season with a solo shot against the Giants.
The Giants’ only run came on a Williamson homer to left-center to tie it at 1 in the fifth.
Bochy said he pulled aside Pagan after the game. “You’ve got to deal with this, but (Buster) Posey smoked it and (Brandon) Crawford smoked it (in the first)”. That could be deflating, but the guy on the mound, he sets the tone. “He’s a battler, Johnny”.
Sure, if NY can play winning baseball for the next seven games, then perhaps a fire sale of Miller, Chapman, or outfielder Carlos Beltran will be put on ice, and the front office will roll the dice on the next two months and hope a playoff appearance, or at least a competitive September race, unfolds. Like Madison Bumgarner the day before, he showed that he’s the kind of workhorse that hardly exists in this game anymore.
CL Aroldis Chapman pitched a one-hitter in the ninth to earn his 20th save of the year.
Williamson had allowed the Yankees to go ahead in the fourth. Williamson, who has gotten pep talks from Posey and Jake Peavy (who is letting Williamson stay at his place) in recent weeks, told himself there was a lot of game left.
“I’ve been doing the job”, Casilla said through interpreter Erwin Higueros.
Jonathan Schoop gave Baltimore a 3-2 lead in the fifth with his 17th homer of the season. “Thank God it kicked right back to him”. Two seasons ago, on April 28, 2014, Dr. James Andrews, performed Tommy John surgery on Williamson and Ivan Nova on the same day. NY suffered a rare loss when its vaunted bullpen trio of Dellin Betances, Andrew Miller and Aroldis Chapman appear in the same game, falling to 19-2 in such situations. Javier Lopez looked like his old self. Betances threw the ensuing pitch over McCann’s head – though not far enough to score Pagan – and forced the manager to abandon that plan in favor of having his right-handed reliever pitch to Crawford. Casilla left the bases loaded in the 10th.
NY went ahead in the fourth after Gregorius reached on an infield single leading off. Mark Teixeira, in a 1-for-15 slide and dropped to seventh in the batting order for only the third time since 2004, singled to right.
That wasn’t limited to the bullpen. Eovaldi kept the shutout by striking out Belt and the Yankees took a 3-0 lead in the sixth when Aaron Hicks scored on Ellsbury’s double-play grounder. “But we can’t get thrown out there”.
“I really was upset with myself”, Williamson said. “The third baseman is on the bag and he didn’t know if they would throw over”.
The Giants had better get focused quick. But for a night, the Giants were all smiles as they shook hands on the infield. He said he needed to “get Belt a break” but likely wouldn’t sit him Monday, when the Cincinnati Reds come to town.
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“They got a break there, and they deserved it”, Bochy said.
