Thursday night didn’t exactly draw parallels to the Yankees’ collapse in the 2004 ALCS, yet the pinstripers did extract some odds-defying revenge over the Red Sox with their decisive 4-0 victory in Game 3 of the American League Wild Card Series.
A best-of-three set, the hosting Yankees didn’t have to conjure the same magic Boston did 21 years ago when it became the only major league club to overcome a 3-0 series deficit in the playoffs. But with Bucky Dent throwing out the ceremonial first pitch on the 47th anniversary of his famous home run at Fenway Park, perhaps there was some voodoo working in the Yankees’ favor Thursday, as they became the first team to advance past the Wild Card round after losing Game 1 since MLB officially expanded its playoff format to include 12 teams in 2022.
“I guess you guys didn’t believe us, but [we have] a lot of belief in each other. We know what type of team we have,” Aaron Judge said after going 4-for-11 in the series. “There’s a lot of belief in each other.”
“We knew we had the chance to come back and win the series,” Austin Wells added. “I think it’s just resilience of the team and not giving up.”
The Yankees accomplished the feat — and avoided early elimination — hours after the Guardians and Padres, losers of Game 1, came up short against the Tigers and Cubs, respectively, in their own do-or-die games. With small-sample history made — thanks in large part to rookie right-hander Cam Schlittler, who had a postseason debut for the ages, and a four-run fourth — the Bombers threw themselves a boozy bash in the Bronx.
“I woke up, and I was locked in,” Schlittler, soaked in champagne, said after the Boston area native threw eight scoreless innings with 12 strikeouts, the most ever by a Yankees rookie in a playoff game. “I knew exactly what I needed to do out there, especially against my hometown team. As I told Andy [Pettitte] yesterday, I wasn’t going to let them beat me. I was just overconfident in that fact.”
Another opportunity for revenge now awaits, as the Yankees will head north of the Canadian border for an ALDS showdown with the well-rested Blue Jays.
It was Toronto that came in first place in the AL East, taking hold of the division in early July as the Yankees stumbled through their annual summer swoon. Even with months of poor play, the division race came down to the final day of the regular season, as both teams went 94-68 this year.
But with the Jays owning the tiebreaker thanks to an 8-5 record in head-to-head play, the Yankees missed out on a coveted bye despite outpacing the Jays at the plate and in the rotation.
The Yankees’ slugging offense ranked first in terms of runs scored and wRC+, while Toronto, pesky and prone to putting the ball in play, finished fourth in both categories. Yankees starters also ranked fourth in rotation ERA while their Jays counterparts finished 20th, though Toronto had the superior bullpen as New York’s relief corps stumbled throughout the season.
“They’re a complete team,” Judge said. “They don’t strike out a lot, so they’re going to put the ball in play and force your hand on defense. But we’re looking forward to it.”
The Rogers Centre, in particular, was a house of horrors for the Yankees this year, as they lost 6-out-of-7 games there over two series in late June and July. The Yankees were playing some of their worst baseball at that point in the season, though, and they took 2-out-of-3 from Toronto at Yankee Stadium in early September.
That series coincided with an end-of-season surge that made the Yankees one of baseball’s hottest teams heading into the postseason. They were able to ride that wave — and lean on some of the adversity they faced over the summer — in the Wild Card series, coming back from a Game 1 defeat that had folks questioning a few of Aaron Boone’s decisions.
Able to rebound in Games 2 and 3 — Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Ben Rice starred in the middle contest — the Yankees managed to survive and advance, keeping their campaign and their championship hopes alive.
They are still several wins away from capturing their first title since 2009, but that dream lives on just a few days after their season appeared to be in jeopardy.
“Toronto is going to be rocking,” Judge said as the Yankees’ celebration winded down. “We love that, and the Bronx is rocking, so it’s gonna be fun.”