πŸ“Œ Join the BPCrew Chapter in your city and meet up with more Yankees fans! πŸ‘‰ CLICK HERE

Series Recap: Yankees sweep with Seattle slew of homers

The New York Yankees finished off their West Coast swing with a 5-4 ledger after recording a three-game sweep of the Seattle Mariners. New York kept pounding the ball and the pitching held up its end of the bargain. This was a series of milestones with the longball.

GAME 1

The Yankees moved up the coast and continued to launch the ball up and out of the ballpark in the Pacific Northwest. A huge second inning proved decisive in a 5-4 victory.

SECOND STANZA SWATS

Batting around during the second inning, the Yankee order went to work on reliever Tommy Milone.

Lifting New York on the board was Gleyber Torres. Torres smoked a solo shot to straightaway center.

Following a one-out walk by Mike Tauchman, Austin Romine doubled the lead with two-out RBI-single to center.

Capping off the offense was Mike Ford. The Yankee first baseman cranked a towering two-run tater to right, making it 4-0.

HAPP SCRAPS

The second inning wasn’t a pleasant time for J.A. Happ either. The veteran lefty yielded a two-out, three-run homer to center by Dylan Moore, cutting the New York edge to 4-3. Otherwise, it was a pretty standard outing by Happ, but he was able to pitch to the scoreboard against a bad M’s squad. Happ went five and fly, allowing three runs, two hits, three walks, and struck out seven.

Embed from Getty Images

FORD FOCUS

The former Rule 5 selection returned by Seattle, Ford was back for more against Milone in the fourth. Ford drilled a solo shot to right, which proved to be the eventual game-winner.

FINISHING TOUCHES

Aside from Nestor Cortes Jr. allowing a solo shot to right by Mallex Smith in the seventh inning, the bullpen basically staved off the Mariners offense. Tommy Kahnle whizzed through a scoreless eighth inning with a pair of K’s. Aroldis Chapman tossed up an identical ledger in the ninth inning to lock it down.

GAME 2

In securing the series, the Yankees really cruised, blanking the Mariners 7-0.

KEEPING IT 100

Facing Yusei Kikuchi in the first frame, the Yankees power was on full display. After LeMahieu singled to left, Judge jolted a two-run tater to dead center and provided the Yankees with a 2-0 advantage on career home run No. 100. Judge became the third-fastest player to reach the century mark.

BOEING BRETT THE JET GOES DEEP FLY

During the third, the Bronx Bombers touched up Kikuchi some more. Following consecutive singles by Torres and Gary Sanchez, Brett Gardner busted a three-run shot to right, making it 5-0 Yanks. Hence, Gardner leads all New York outfielders in home runs with 18, at least for one more day.

TANAKA TUESDAY

No matter the time zone, it was Tanaka time for Masahiro Tanaka and the Yankees. Tanaka twirled four no-hit frames before Kyle Seager pulled a double to right, bringing back memories of Al Martin’s hit in the 2000 ALCS as Roger Clemens one-hit the M’s in Seattle. Tanaka would only allow three hits, one of which was probably an error by Torres at shortstop, walked one, and fanned seven in seven scoreless frames.

Embed from Getty Images

FINISHING TOUCHES

Romine had another solid game behind the dish and at the dish. A hot smash ground out to short in the fifth and a bases-loaded walk in the ninth gave him a two-RBI evening.

Luis Cessa would finish out the final two scoreless frames for the combined shutout.

GAME 3

In completing the sweep, the Yankees’ home runs had the launch angle arc of a Dale Ellis three at Key Arena back in the day. The four home runs added up to a 7-3 victory.

GARY SHEFFIELD

I have to give a shoutout out to Keith McPherson on this one. After Dee Gordon played a ground ball into a two-out Torres single to second, Sanchez smoked Justus Sheffield. The Bronx Bombers’ backstop leaned into a full-count slider to left and did a nice Cadillac job around the bases. Sanchez registered his second career season with 30 dingers. El Gary also cut down a pair of would-be base-stealers at second as well.

PAX TO THE FUTURE

In his old haunts, James Paxton was rolling with his changeup and curveball for the first few innings without yielding a hit. Yet, he and Sheffield, who were swapped for each other in the offseason, seemed to trade places temporarily in the fourth. Sheffield whiffed the side, while Paxton found bouts of wildness and yielded a game-tying two-run tater to Kyle Seager in the fourth frame. He would keep it right there, however, and the Yankees allowed him to rest after five innings.

LAUNCH ANGLES

Reality would resurface as well with the Yanks offense in the fifth frame. Ford uncorked a solo swat to right, providing New York with a 3-2 edge.

After a one-out double to left by Tyler Wade, who also swiped third, LeMahieu chased Sheffield with an RBI-single to left.

Judge kept the ball rolling against Matt Wisler, parking a two-run tater to left.

Capping off the offense in the ninth for the Yanks was a crush job by LeMahieu to left.

ON DECK

At 88-47, the Yankees return home to host the Oakland Athletics at Yankee Stadium for a three-game set beginning Friday evening.

Pitching probables: TBD vs. CC Sabathia, TBD vs. Domingo German, TBD vs. J.A. Happ.