BRONX, N.Y. — Win series. Make the playoffs. Win playoffs. Win pennant. Win World Series. Yes, their series finale was very winnable but the New York Yankees taking two of three from the Boston Red Sox is a great way to start the season off on the right foot.
Taking a brief look back, here are my three up and three down from the first series:
Three up:
Giancarlo Stanton: The man continues to mash against the Bosox. Stanton ran his streak to six consecutive games with a homer against the Red Sox. His home run in game one pulled the Bronx Bombers even and his smash in game two put them ahead for good. Stanton paced the way with five hits in the series.
Anthony Rizzo: Nobody beats the Rizz! Rizzo made for his share of timely hits, even in the losing effort. His home runs helped pull the Yankees out of early holes and his glove pulled out some wayward throws from the rest of the infield. Rizzo knocked in a pair in each game this series.
Bullpen: We all knew the Yankees bullpen would be pretty deep but piecing together 18.2 frames while yielding three runs is impressive. That said, one hopes the starters continue to build up, otherwise, these guys are going to be pretty gassed come Memorial Day.
Three down:
Defense: It was not a banner weekend for Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Joey Gallo, and Jose Trevino in particular. Even some of the plays in foul territory with Rizzo were debatable. The official scorer was more generous than I because there are some things that need to be tightened up.
Joey Gallo: I like Gallo but he wasn’t exactly making anyone forget about Brett Gardner in left. As mentioned, the defense was spotty, especially in the second game. The strikeouts and walks were there but the pop was not.
Isiah Kiner-Falefa: I didn’t expect him to hit but I thought he’d field better. Perhaps it was nerves or maybe he’s a better third baseman but if you’re not going to hit, you need to be Ozzie Smith/Rey Ordonez out there at shortstop.
