NEW YORK – The Yankees have a couple of days left on the schedule, but the ones that will ultimately determine how this season is judged won’t come until next week. Everything that transpires between now and then is simply preparation for the American League Wild Card Series.
With their upcoming matchup against the Red Sox officially locked in, the Yankees checked off another 18 innings of regular-season action on Friday, securing a split of a single-admission doubleheader with a 6-3 victory over the Orioles at Yankee Stadium.
“This is the most important part of the season,” said Anthony Volpe, who drove in two runs for New York. “This is the best part of why you do it; this is why you play. It’s Yankees/Red Sox – that’s what October baseball is.”
Boston’s victory over the Cubs in Game 1 of their doubleheader secured the No. 5 seed and confirmed a meeting with the Yankees, who claimed the No. 4 seed. It will be a rematch of last year’s AL Wild Card Series, which the Yankees won in three games.
“The biggest thing is just trying to stay as sharp as you can,” manager Aaron Boone said, “knowing you’re going into an off-day [Saturday] and knowing the biggest days of the season are coming.”
After following CC Sabathia’s Monument Park enshrinement with a 10-2 loss, the Yankees bounced back. Ryan McMahon, Spencer Jones, Volpe, Heliot Ramos and Luis García Jr. all drove in runs, while Will Warren logged an encouraging 3 2/3-inning relief outing.
“It’s obviously something new, so I want to get used to it,” Warren said. “In San Diego, I ran in and was a little bit gassed. We wanted to repeat that and just get our feet wet. I felt good, a little less blackout this time.”
The Yankees have yet to announce who will start Game 1 vs. Boston, with pitching coach Matt Blake saying that they are weighing Max Fried on extra rest against AL Cy Young Award frontrunner Cam Schlittler, who would be on normal rest for the opener.
But with Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodón also in line as playoff starters, Warren is slated to transition to a bullpen role in October.
Not surprisingly, Warren’s stuff played up out of the bullpen, including a four-seam fastball that averaged 94.5 mph – 0.8 mph more than his season average. Warren permitted three hits without a walk, striking out seven.
“There’s stories of guys going down there, doing heroic things out of the blue,” Boone said. “The fact that he’s done it now a couple of times this season, hopefully that little bit of familiarity will benefit him and us.”
McMahon opened the scoring with a fifth-inning RBI double off Orioles starter Brandon Young, who worked five frames. Jones touched Josh Walker for a sixth-inning RBI single, and Volpe found the seats for a two-run ground-rule double facing Anthony Nunez later that inning.
Ramos and García each had an RBI single in the seventh.
Boone noted earlier this week that No. 3 prospect Carlos Lagrange was being considered for a playoff role, fueling speculation that the hard-throwing right-hander might be promoted for his Major League debut this weekend.
That talk was doused on Friday, with Boone noting that the 23-year-old had his season interrupted by a right shoulder capsule strain, though he returned to action for an inning in September with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
Lagrange faced Trent Grisham and Giancarlo Stanton in live BP on Thursday in Bridgewater, N.J., and still could see action at some point if the Yankees advance.
“He had an injury, and he’s just started throwing lives again,” Boone said. “He’s not in play right now. He could be down the road, but he’s not in play yet.”
Instead, the Yankees promoted right-hander Alexander Cornielle, who made his Major League debut in the ninth inning. Cornielle surrendered a Dylan Beavers homer in a 34-pitch, two-run frame.
Friday’s doubleheader was due to an incoming Nor’easter, the effects of which were felt in the late innings, when rain and wind swirled through the ballpark. The Yanks are off on Saturday and remain scheduled to complete the regular season at 3:20 p.m. ET on Sunday.
And beyond that?
“It’s all hands on deck,” Volpe said. “I think we have a really complete roster and a lot of winning players. You never know what’s going to happen.”