The Yankees clinched a postseason berth in the final inning of the final game of the season, and minutes later, they likely watched as the Red Sox finished off a comeback win in Washington, cementing their own postseason berth and sending the Bombers to Beantown for Tuesday’s AL Wild Card Game.
Aaron Judge likely wasn’t fully joking if at all when he told YES Network’s Meredith Marakovits that “the first 162, those were just spring training,” but in effect, it’s true: the regular season is now over and meaningless, and the Yankees need to get their first of what they hope is 12 postseason wins on Tuesday in Boston.
“Look, they’re a great team; we’ve obviously had many battles with them over the years, and I’m sure it’s going to be a battle Tuesday night,” manager Aaron Boone said. “We look forward to the challenge. This is what you work so hard for, the chance to compete for a championship. We punched our ticket today, and we’re looking forward to giving it our best shot. Hopefully we can move on.”
“It’s going to be a fun game. We’ll both bring our A games, and it’s another big game in this rivalry. We’re looking forward to it,” added Judge.
The slugger, whose walk-off hit sent the Yankees to Boston, noted that the team would of course rather play at home, but it will be an exciting atmosphere nonetheless.
For Anthony Rizzo, his first taste of the AL playoffs after spending almost his entire career in the NL comes in the stadium home to the organization that drafted him in 2007 – in another big game in one of the most heated rivalries in sports.
“I’m shocked it’s us and the Red Sox, and not a four-way tie or something,” Rizzo said, “but that’s why you have to keep fighting and grinding. It’s going to be amazing though; going there last weekend and playing that big series was huge. The playoff atmosphere has been there for a while now, and we’re putting out our best product when this team’s back is against the wall.”
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Aroldis Chapman was Rizzo’s teammate on the 2016 Cubs team that broke the Curse of the Billy Goat and won it all, and now, he’s ready to do it again and end the Yankees’ 12-year drought.
“We definitely have a big opportunity in front of us, and the next game is the most important game, so we need to focus on that. It’s going to be exciting,” Chapman said. “It’s going to be a very exciting game where both teams leave everything on the field.”
To a man, almost everyone who spoke after the game reiterated the mantra that the team is ready, and knows what’s at stake.
“We’re ready to go, no matter who or where we play,” Odor said. “We’re going to go out and give 100 percent, and I believe in my teammates.”
“Definitely a very important game for us, we have to just keep doing what we’ve been doing,” Jonathan Loaisiga added. “If I get in, I just have to execute my pitches. I understand how big it is, but I will enjoy the opportunity.”
Jameson Taillon shrugged off an ankle injury that forced him out of his last start early to take the ball for Sunday’s finale, and while he most likely won’t participate Tuesday, he knows what the Yankees will be walking into in Fenway Park.
“You can feel that Yankees-Red Sox is a little different, and I’ve never experienced anything like it coming from the NL Central,” “Even back in June it felt crazy, so I don’t think there’s anything like this; the fans were on their feet the whole time last weekend. It’ll be exciting, and no one I’d rather have on the mound than Gerrit Cole in that spot.”
Chad Green, who also pitched today, might be on the hill at some point – and thinks that the experience the Yankees have in those do-or-die games, as well as recent history in Fenway, might be an advantage.
“Definitely excited after a huge win today, but we have a lot of work ahead of us,” Green said. “Not an easy place to play, but I think having played in quite a few Wild Card games and having that experience will help us on Tuesday. We’ve been in some must-win games there, a few just last week, and that can only help us. I think we enjoy that pressure.”
And how does Bronxie the Turtle feel about it, despite being spared the champagne bath?
“Bronxie’s feeling good in there, giving us a lot of energy. We’ve been talking a lot about the turtle and having fun, but I put it back in the cage because I don’t want anything to happen to it,” said Odor, who admitted he doesn’t know Bronxie’s gender. “We’re just trying to do something different to have some fun, and everybody comes to see the turtle every day.”
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