David Cone gives us a postseason education
NEW YORK - Just shy of four years ago, the Red Sox and Yankees met up for a Wild Card winner-take-all, one-game showdown. They're about to do it again.
The Red Sox couldn't seal the deal when it came to closing out the Yankees in the second game of the teams' best-of-three Wild Card series at Yankee Stadium, succumbing to a 4-3 loss to the Yanks.
Much like Game 1, it was a nail-biter throughout, except this time it was the Yankees who managed the biggest hit at the biggest moment.
The decisive blow for the hosts came with two outs in the eighth inning and the teams knotted at 3-3. After retiring his first two batters in the frame, Garrett Whitlock walked Jazz Chisholm on an errant fastball. Then, with the count once again full and Chisholm on the move, Austin Wells lined a single into the right field corner.
With the speedy Chishom in motion, the hit was enough to help the Yankees baserunner beat right fielder Nate Eaton's throw home and give New York a lead it wouldn't surrender.
Whitlock was the Red Sox's sixth pitcher after Alex Cora gave starter Brayan Bello the hook after giving up two runs (on a Ben Rice two-run homer) over just 2 1/3 innings.
The Red Sox had come back from a 3-2 deficit thanks to Trevor Story's solo homer in the sixth inning.