New York Yankees starting pitcher Nathan Eovaldi was not long for Wednesday night’s game. Eovaldi is heading to NY for further tests.
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After throwing 12 pitches (eight strikes) in a scoreless first inning, Eovaldi was relieved by left-hander Chasen Shreve, who began warming up during the bottom of the first.
– Tazawa started the eighth by giving up a solo home run to Sanchez and walked Austin Romine before getting yanked for Robbie Ross Jr.
Castro handed NY the lead for good, driving a first-pitch slider from Tazawa into left for a two-run double to cap the Yankees’ seventh-inning outburst. Any time discomfort is felt in an elbow, the worst is expected.
Dustin Pedroia and Mookie Betts did impress in their new respective spots as the team’s leadoff and No. 3 hitter – combining for four hits, three doubles and two RBIs.
Girardi said he “made a mistake” by saying on Sunday that if Rodriguez wanted to play in all remaining games before his release that he would try to get him in the games.
When asked about his relationship with his manager prior to first pitch Wednesday, Rodriguez said, “I’m just going to keep it about the game”.
“I talked to him again on Tuesday about it and said: This is what my plans were, ‘” Girardi explained. Boston scratched knuckleballer Steven Wright because the All-Star jammed his right shoulder while diving into a base as pinch runner against the Los Angeles Dodgers last weekend. “When we look at this decision, we’re basing it on a substantial amount of at-bats – and it’s not what we want”.
“I think maybe in the long run it won’t, but I think in the short term it’s been hard”, Girardi said.
Girardi added he should not have said after A-Rod’s news conference on Sunday that he would let the designated hitter dictate his playing time this week. No one individual is ever bigger than this game. “It’s part of the job, I guess”. “I think there’s a better balance of life after what I went through”.
Girardi explained further that Boston was in the AL East race and Tampa Bay was out of it, justifying his decision to start Rodriguez on Friday.
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When Derek Jeter’s farewell tour – in which Girardi consistently batted the shortstop second even though he had the fifth-lowest OPS in the majors in 2014 – was brought up, the manager said he had no better options that season. The Dominican Republic native owns 149 strikeouts in 125 1/3 innings this season but had two of his lowest strikeout performances (three in five innings and four in six) against the Red Sox earlier in the season.
