A lot of moving pieces in the MLB right now. The Rays look to bury the Red Sox from catching up. The Yankees finish up their west coast trip before heading home. Let’s see what happened this week and what’s to come this Labor Day Weekend in the MLB AL East.
TAMPA BAY RAYS
Luis Patino went 5.2 innings and gave up only one run against the Red Sox. Brandon Lowe went 2-for-3 and hit his 31st home run. Kevin Kiermaier went 2-for-4. The Rays won 6-1.
Ryan Yarbrough went six innings and gave up two runs. Randy Arozarena hit his 18th home run of the season. The 9th inning was a bit too close to the Rays’ liking as Dietrich Enns gave up three runs. Andrew Kittredge got his 5th save of the season with the 8-5 win.
Drew Rasmussen went four innings and gave up one run. Wander Franco went 2-for-4 and hit his 7th home run. Nelson Cruz and Manuel Margot went 2-for4 as well. The game was tied in the 9th inning until Pete Fairbanks gave up the winning run. The Rays lost 3-2.
Wander stays hot with a two-run shot! pic.twitter.com/8NDXt2Svnh — Tampa Bay Rays (@RaysBaseball) September 2, 2021
Shane McClanahan pitched five innings and gave up the four runs the Red Sox needed to win. The offense only got five hits. The Rays lost 4-0.
The Twins come over during the weekend. Michael Wacha, Chris Archer, and Luis Patino are scheduled to pitch.
NEW YORK YANKEES
Corey Kluber made his first start since landing on the Injured List this year. He was cruising through the first three innings until he hit a bump in the road in the fourth. He ended up giving up five runs. Although he was on a pitch count, I felt he should have been removed prior to the damage being worse.
Andrew Heaney came on in relief and gave up two runs in the two innings he pitched. Giancarlo Stanton continued his hot bat and went 2-for-4 with a home run. Aaron Judge and DJ Lemahieu went 2-for-5. Anthony Rizzo went 2-for-4 with a walk. The Yanks lost 8-7.
Jameson Taillon lasted 4.2 innings and gave up six runs. Rizzo and Gary Sanchez hit their 18th home run. Rizzo also went 2-for-4. LeMahieu went 2-for-5 and Judge went 2-for-3 with a walk. The Yankees lost 6-4.
Gerrit Cole was just dominant in a much-needed win. He pitched seven innings, gave up one run, and struck out 15. Judge went 2-for-3 and hit his 30th home run. Luke Voit went 2-for-3. Aroldis Chapman got his 25th save. The Yankees avoided the sweep and won 4-1.
It’s a Cole world, after all. pic.twitter.com/mdBtLNAna3 — New York Yankees (@Yankees) September 2, 2021
This weekend they face the O’s at home. Nestor Cortes, Jordan Montgomery, and Corey Kluber are scheduled to pitch.
BOSTON RED SOX
Nick Pivetta went five innings and gave up four runs. Bobby Dalbec hit his 18th home run. Alex Verdugo went 2-for-4. The Red Sox lost 6-1.
The Sox decided to go with a bullpen day. This was in the middle of continuously adding players to the COVID-19 IL daily since last Friday in Cleveland that started with Enrique Hernandez. Xander Bogaerts was pulled in the second inning because he tested positive.
Newly acquired,