BALTIMORE – Brandon Hyde, the old minor-league catcher turned manager, was headed to the New York Yankees dugout, digging his heels in for more leverage, driving his legs, only to be thwarted by a backup catcher who Started the day celebrating my 25th birthday and ended it with the goal of not lighting, but extinguishing, any fireworks.
“I thought it was a good birthday,” Austin Wells said later Friday night, the chaos at the end of the Yankees’ 4-1 victory over the Baltimore Orioles safely in the rear view.
“I was trying to limit the damage.”
It’s an appropriate sentiment both for the bench-clearing brawl that marred the bottom of the ninth inning — and also for a Yankees team that instilled fear among its supporters.
They had lost or split their previous eight series dating back to mid-June, when they were aiming to trim Baltimore’s two-game lead in the American League East before teams left for the All-Star break on Sunday. Came along to Camden Yards.
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They halved that deficit on Friday, inadvertently throwing kerosene on what was turning into an epic on-field rivalry and a spicy one after that.
“The intensity level has been pretty much the same all year,” Yankees winning pitcher Gerrit Cole said Friday.
“So, I hope that continues.”
Burnt in the Bronx a month earlier, when Yankees superstar Aaron Judge was hit on the arm by a pitch but escaped serious injury, second baseman Gleyber Torres also wore it the night he played.
Yankees starter Nestor Cortes responded by buzzing the tower over Orioles All-Star shortstop Gunnar Henderson; A day later, reliever Victor Gonzalez drilled Henderson in the shoulder.
That week the high road was taken in the Bronx, and the teams convened in Baltimore, with the Orioles taking a 5–2 advantage in the season series. It seemed to the whole world that the Yankees would unexpectedly claim the opener, so much so that Cole had his best game since recovering from an elbow injury and Judge clubbed his 33rd home run. It’s business as usual .
And then it rained in the ninth inning, turning the steamy 81-degree night into a wet one. Yankees closer Clay Holmes homered off Jordan Westberg in the first out of the inning, but he hit it badly when he tried to throw a front-door sinker to left-handed batting Heston Kjerstad.
The 97 mph pitch flew high and deep and rookie Kjerstad was helpless to move, ducking just enough for the ball to hit him just short of the helmet. He remained down in the batter’s box for a few moments, got up, was examined by trainer Brian Abel and walked briskly away before heading to the dugout; He will be in concussion protocol on Saturday.
Holmes’s purpose was to express his feelings without any intention. Hyde did not appear receptive to those comments.
Someone – coach, player, otherwise – said something from the Yankees dugout and Hyde, his rabbit ears probably perking up at such a comment, turned and walked quickly toward the Yankees dugout.
“I’m going back right now and I heard something from their dugout, so I reacted the way I did,” Hyde said.
And a touch of chaos was added to the pennant race.
Hyde had gone no further than the left-hander’s box by the time Wales – only in the game because Jose Trevino had injured his quadriceps – dug in.
A quagmire formed around them, bullpens were running and words were exchanged – “You have to be there (to know),” Judge said with a smile.
“Anytime a player gets hit in the head, emotions run high,” said Orioles outfielder Austin Hays, who replaced Kjerstad at base. “I don’t think Clay was trying to hit Heston over the head right there. Probably just trying to get in, the front door sinker and he missed.
“That ball hit Heston very hard. I really hope he’s okay. We’ll say some prayers tonight. Whenever you see players getting hit on hands and head, it is dangerous and people can leave the game because of it.
“Emotions are always high when you see someone reach the top. “I think that’s what you saw there.”
There was some dispute with the other party on this.
“I think it was completely understandable,” Cole said. “Man, it’s so wet out there tonight. Anyone who was there knows it was hard to get a grip on baseball tonight. The boy got head injury.
“So, it’s understandable that Brandon got angry. And he’s protecting his players.”
The judge said: “He is their manager. He has been a great manager for them for many years. He always supports his guys, so I think he will stand up for his team in such a situation.
“I’ve got a lot of respect for him and what he does. So I think if there’s ever a time to stand up…”
‘I thought he looked like our ace’
The series resumes on Saturday, but Hyde almost certainly won’t be there to watch it. There is a possibility of suspension from Major League Baseball, and managers cannot appeal such discipline.
If bad blood is brewing, bench coach Freddy Gonzalez will be presiding over it. But the teams’ larger goals may outweigh any overt displays of masculinity or vigilante justice.
“I don’t think so. It’s impossible to get caught up in playing too much,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “We’ve got to play well, we’ve got to win ballgames.
“It’s the same for them. Hopefully, we can come out and play baseball tomorrow.”
He will have difficulty matching Friday’s artistry. Reigning Cy Young Award winner Cole, making his fifth start of the season, confirmed that the past month was indeed his personal spring training, building up his arm strength after being forced to the sidelines due to an elbow strain in the first half.
He hit the sixth inning and 100-pitch mark for the first time this season. He comeback from a 3-0 count, stopping Henderson on a curveball and getting the tying run on base in the third, beginning a streak of retiring 11 consecutive batters.
He increased his fastball velocity to 99 mph, finished his night with a deft layup off a comebacker and left a tired bullpen with only nine outs.
Boone said, “I thought he looked like our ace.” “There was an edge to him, but he was having fun. There was a joy in the way he was pitching.
“He’s one of the great pitchers of his generation. He is an ace and he likes challenges, he likes competition. It was fun to watch him compete this time.”
And oh my god, did the Yankees need it.
Their rotation was excellent in the first month of the season, followed by rookie Luis Gil’s dominant performance in May, winning AL Pitcher of the Month honors. Yet as soon as Cole returned, they burst into tears.
Gil? His ERA in his last six starts is 7.00, while his ERA in his last six starts was 0.60. After a 14-start run with a 2.93 mark, Carlos Rodon has a 10.57 ERA over his last five starts. It is not coincidental that the Yankees were 11–3 in their good times and 0–5 in their bad times.
boiling point
Still, the Orioles are also in bad shape at the moment. They got swept at home by the Central Chicago Cubs this week for the first time in three years, no less. On Friday, he handed the ball to Cade Povich, a left-hander making his seventh major league start.
“I think we will find out in the first innings itself. He had a little bit of an up and down first inning,” Hyde said before the game. “He’s having trouble with his orders.”
you may say. Povich walked five batters in his 5⅓-innings, giving up Judge’s huge home run over the left field wall. The Orioles learned; Judge threw an 0-2 curveball over the fence, but his four other plate appearances saw exactly one strikeout, all of which ended in walks.
Baltimore’s vaunted offense isn’t any better. The Orioles are batting .182 (13 of 82) in 10 games this month, and could not extend their lead over the Yankees to more than three games, even though New York lost seven of nine.
Now, it is limited to single games. Someone will hold at least a one-game lead before the break, and both teams will almost certainly punch a ticket to the playoffs.
Who will become the East champion will not be decided for about three months. The next stage comes on Saturday, possibly in a more calm environment.
“I know we impressed some of their guys with pitches. “They’ve got us,” the judge said.
“It was boiling in there.”
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