Rizzo, Cole Power Yankees to Game One Win Over Guardians
Bader adds homer, three relievers record eight outs
The New York Yankees defeated the Cleveland Guardians 4–1 on Tuesday in the first game of a best-of-five divisional series.
New York was down 1–0 early but scored four unanswered runs to take advantage of the series.
The Bronx came alive in the sixth inning when Anthony Rizzo clubbed a big two-run home run to extend a one-run lead.
It came off Guardians starter Cal Quantrill, whose 3–2 cutter was right down the middle, and Rizzo made him pay.
“I tried to put a good swing on it,” Rizzo said.
“Got a pitch to hit and put a good swing on it.”
Game summary
The Guardians opened the scoring in the third with Steven Kwan’s solo home run.
New York would respond with four unanswered runs.
Harrison Bader tied the game in the third with a solo homer, Jose Trevino added a sacrifice fly in the fifth, and Rizzo’s bomb came in the sixth inning.
Gerrit Cole was great, pitching into the seventh. He went 6.1 innings, allowing a run on four hits, walking one, and striking out eight.
Jonathan Loáisiga got the last two outs in the seventh, Wandy Peralta got four outs, and Clay Holmes shut the door with the last two outs of the game.
Cole (1–0 postseason record) picked up the win.
Offensive performance
With the bye, the Yankees avoided facing both Shane Beiber and Triston McKenzie in game one, making it even more crucial to have this game.
Bieber is slated to start game two.
The long ball played a big factor in the victory.
The Yankees have twice the amount of home runs (254) than Cleveland (127) did in all of 2022. They hit twice as many as them in game one, out-homering them two-to-one.
It was a quiet night for the stars. Judge went 0-for-3 with three strikeouts, a walk, and a run scored. Stanton went 0-for-2 with a walk.
It didn’t take much to win, but any win in October is great.
Pitching performance
Cleveland was coming off a series where four total runs were scored over two games and 24 innings.
They are a middle-of-the-pack offense, leading many to believe Cole should dominate.
He wasn’t perfect, but he was exactly what the Yankees hoped for when signing him to his contract.
He pitched into the seventh and left with the Yankees holding a commanding three-run lead.
The only issue with his start Tuesday was the long ball.
Kwan’s homer was Cole’s ninth straight game in allowing a home run.
It may have been his only blemish on the night, but should the Yankees advance, one blemish can turn into a barrage against either the Seattle Mariners or Houston Astros.
The bullpen was solid.
Holmes made his return, and it was a shaky start as he hit the first batter he faced on the first pitch he threw.
But he quickly took control and registered a groundout and flyout to end the game.
Looking ahead
Game two of the best-of-five ALDS series will take place in the Bronx on Thursday at 7:37 p.m. EST, weather permitting.
Nestor Cortes will make his first start of the postseason as Bieber takes the mound for Cleveland.
10 more wins.
Let’s go Yankees!
