Yankees explode for nine runs in win over White Sox

BRONX N.Y. -- It was a rainy night in the Bronx on Wednesday as the Yankees looked to take the final game of the series against the Chicago White Sox. Behind four Yankee home runs, Masahiro Tanaka was able to silence the White Sox bats in the 9-1 victory. Chase Headley started off the game with a loud, two run home run to give the Yankees an early 2-0 lead in the first inning.

Two-run homer for Chase Headley, the on-base machine.

— Bryan Hoch (@BryanHoch) April 19, 2017

Both Starlin Castro and Aaron Judge added to the lead with back-to-back home runs in the fifth inning, with Judge's bomb going halfway up the bleachers in left field. Aaron Hicks hit a homer of his own in the eighth inning as well. The Yankee offense, as a whole, was all over White Sox starter Dylan Covey. Covey allowed 10 hits in just five innings to go along with eight earned runs.

We are all witnesses. #AllRise pic.twitter.com/vIaMYA607i — New York Yankees (@Yankees) April 20, 2017

Throughout the course of the Yankees’ hot start two hitters have really stood above the rest of the offense: Headley and Castro. Headley is hitting over .400 and looks like a different person at the plate. He has said himself that he is more relaxed and is seeing the ball a lot better than he did at the start of last season. Then, there is Castro. The Yankee second baseman is batting .368 following a hamstring injury that effectively ended his season last year. Castro has always been a good hitter but has been know to chase pitches out of the zone frequently. Castro’s patience has made him a better hitter so far and has made the Yankee offense lethal. Tanaka didn’t have his best stuff on Wednesday night, but was still effective against the Sox lineup. Tanaka allowed only one earned run on the night but got roughed up by White Sox star, Jose Abreu. Abreu went 3-3 off of the Yankees’ ace and drove in the only run for the White Sox on the night. Other than the one run, Tanaka struck out six over seven innings of work. Relievers Bryan Mitchell and Tommy Layne closed out the game with two scoreless innings. With the win, the Yankees improved to 10-5 on the season and finished their home-stand 8-1. The Yankees will travel to Pittsburgh to face a Starling Marte-less Pirates team on Friday night. CC Sabathia will start the road trip off against Tyler Glasnow. Win- Masahiro Tanaka (2-1) Loss- Dylan Covey (0-1)