A near no-hitter was turned into a ridiculous victory by a player the Mets didn't even want.
The Yankees closed out their series with the Rays on a day of somber remembrance for New York City and the nation at large. As has been the case for over a hundred years fans looked to baseball to provide a break from reality for a while. Luckily for us, baseball turned out fun today.
It was hard-luck loser Michael Pineda facing off against Alex Cobb in the latest of an infinite number of must-wins for the Yankees. Things were going nice and steady for Pineda until the top of the third inning. After narrowly missing a home run to left Wil Myers reached on an infield single. Matt Joyce followed with a single and was brought home when Yunel Escobar got one just over the wall in left to make it 3-0 Rays. Pineda was doing just fine from that point on up until Escobar came up again and hit another homer, thankfully with nobody on base this time. It was 4-0 Rays.
I know you're tired of reading this, but bear with me. The offense was doing nothing tonight. Normally that is being said in a figurative sense, but today they were unable to propel a baseball through the air or off the ground and reach base without the aid of a Rays miscue for most of the game. Thankfully Chris Young saved us all from a possible no-hitter with a double into right-center in the bottom of the eighth. Then the currently injured but still awesome Martin Prado crushed one into the seats in left to cut the lead in half to 4-2.
The Rays combination of Brad Boxberger and Jake McGee had normally befuddled the Yankees this year, but after Boxberger gave up the dinger to Prado it was McGee's turn to get waxed. Following a nasty beanball to the chin of Chase Headley, Ichiro Suzuki slashed a double into left. After Zelous Wheeler pinch hit and whiffed, it was time for Yankee Legend Chris Young to come up again. While a smarter man would know to put the brilliant Young on base, McGee tempted fate. He paid for his hubris as Young crushed his tepid offering over the left field wall for a game-winning three run homer. The legend of CY began that fateful day:
Credit: @PSA_GIFs
Pineda was good aside from two crucial mistakes to Escobar. Probably most importantly he pitched well into the eighth inning and threw 96 pitches. He's going to be a big part of the Yankees 2015 plans, so the best thing he can do in 2014 is show he can throw a lot of pitches and not show any ill effects from it. Also, he kept the Yankees just close enough so Young could muscle up and save the team.
After today's preposterous theatrics, the Yankees play a doubleheader against one of the best teams in the league, the Baltimore Orioles in Maryland. The fun starts at 1:05 with Brandon McCarthy and Kevin Gausman as your probables. Young will likely hit four homers.