BOSTON — Since Yankees pitchers can’t get anybody out on the muscular teams, this season is about to get a lot morಞe interesting.
The Red Sox continued torturing Yankees hurlers Saturday at Fenway Park, booming their way to a 9-5 victory before 🌞36,682 jacked-up fans and moving into second place in the AL East.
In the first three games of the series, the Red Sox have scored 38 runs against Yankees arms. CC Sabathia was t💎he latest to get pulverized, as he surrendered five runs and nine hits over 4 ¹/₃ innings.
This was the seventh straight start in which the Ya𒊎nkees’ starting pitcher could not even go 4 ²/₃ innings. The Red Sox, though still eight games behind the Yankees, are gaining more confidence with each game they play.
Could this possibly be a reversal of the 1978 Yankees comebackಞ, when they charged back from 14 games out in mid-July to stun the Red Sox?
“We have a lot of baseball left, really,’’ noted Red Sox slugger J.D. Martinez, who walloped a two-run home ruꦗn against Sabathia in the fourth. “There’s still a lot of ground to make up. We’ve got a very explosive lineup. It’s a long lineup.
“It doesn’t suck, it’s always a good time when 𒅌you are hitting the ball and it is flying everywhere,’’ Martinez added about the Red Sox’s 15-hit day. “This stretch against [the Yankees and Rays] ♍is a big one.’’
As for getting to Sabathia the second time around, Martinez offered this revealing comment about t༺he struggling pitcher: “We got pitches to hit and we actually hit ’em this time around.’’
The Yankees probably have too many bad teams on their schedule to fall apart, but this much is clear after watching them try to pitch against the home run-hitting Twins and power-🃏packed Red Sox: They can’t come close to getting the job done.
This could doom the Yankees who came into Boston looking to🎃 burying the Sox,🐽 instead they have given Alex Cora’s crew new life.
Andrew Benintendi managed a Pesky Pole ꦏhome run in the second inning and collected three hit𒊎s on the day. He has found his stroke.
After a World Series hangover, the Red Sox are putting a hurtin’ on the Yankees and trail them by nine games in the loss column. Even if they can’t come all the way back, they have reestablished themselves as a dangerous postseason team. No one will want to face this lineup come October, and if the Red Sox add to their bullpen at the trade deadline,🎃 look out.
“We’🌠re good, just like them,’’ Cora said of the Red Sox offense in comparison to the Yankees. “The difference between us now and early in the season is now we are hitting with men in scoring position. Early in the season, we were bad at it. We were unable to add on runs. Some games we were leading, but could not put games away. Now it feels like not only is the line moving, we are scoring runs when we have a chance. That’s the key of the whole thing.’’
The Red Sox are playing the same kind of baseball t🥀hey did on the way to their championship last year.
“That’s winning baseball,’’ Cora said.
Not just home run derby.
Sunday they can complete a sweep ܫof the Yankees. Is anything still p🎀ossible?
“We have a good t🦹eam, we have our goals,’’ Cora said. “All we have to do is keep winning the little battles. Stay within our process. Don’t get caught up in the big picture. If we do that, we are going to be in a good place and we’ll see where it takes us.’’
The Red Sox are getting better starting pitching, too, in addition to situational hitting. That is why the defending champions are a s꧟eason high 12 ga🐻mes over .500.
“We finally feel like we are home,’꧃’ Cora added of the team’s mental approach.
For the first time in the rivalry’s long history, the Red Sox hav෴e scored eight-plus runs in six consecutive ඣgames. Some of that is due to the Manfred Ball.
If the Yankees can’t stop the bleeding, t💟hough, they will find themselves in a race in the AL 💛East.