The New York Yankees kick-off their biggest series of the year by welcoming in the Boston Red Sox on Thursday night.
After being swept at home by the Cleveland Indians, the New York Yankees will look to right the ship on Thursday night as they take on the Boston Red Sox for the first of four at Yankee Stadium.
Taking the hill for New York will be veteran left-hander CC Sabathia, who’s making his 22nd start of his 17th season and his 250th as a Yankee. He took a no-decision in his last start against Seattle on Friday after allowing just one run in seven innings while striking out six — helping him surpass Mike Mussina (2,813 K) for 19th place on
the all-time strikeouts list.
Sabathia has faced the Red Sox three times this season and is 3-0 with a 0.90 ERA, a 0.850 WHIP and an opponent’s slash line of .159/.227/.232.
Going for the Red Sox will be Eduardo Rodriguez, who last faced the Yankees on August 11 and allowed just two hits over six scoreless innings — marking the fourth time in as many tries against New York in which he has held them to two or fewer runs in six innings or more. That’s tied for the second longest streak of such starts by a Red Sox starter since 1913, trailing only Babe Ruth’s five from 1916-18.
Lineups:
Yankees vs. Red Sox starts tonight at 7:05pm on WPIX pic.twitter.com/q3gHgX9cao
— Yankees PR Dept. (@YankeesPR) August 31, 2017
Player To Watch: Rafael Devers
Just call him the newest Yankee-killer. In six games against New York this season, the 20-year-old has gone 8-for-22 (.364) with three home runs and six RBI’s. His most notable homer was a game-tying shot off Aroldis Chapman in the ninth inning on August 19 — which paved the way to a 4-3 Boston win.
Show-Stopper:
In his nine starts following a loss this season, Sabathia is 7-0 with a 1.44 ERA.
Soaring Back:
Yankees first baseman Greg Bird drove in all four of the Yankees’ Game 2 runs on Wednesday afternoon thanks to an RBI single in the second inning and a three-run home run in the ninth. The 24-year-old is now 4-for-14 (.286) with six RBI’s in five games since being reinstated from the disabled list on August 26.
https://twitter.com/TheRenderMLB_/status/903047088329678848
This Day In Yankees’ History:
On Aug. 31, 1995, Paul O’Neill smacked three home runs and collected a
career-high eight RBI’s in an eventual 11-6 victory over the California Angels at Yankee Stadium.
How To Watch:
- Time: 7:05 p.m. ET
- Channel: WPIX, NESN
- Radio: WFAN 660/101.9 FM, WEEI 93.7
- Venue: Yankee Stadium, Bronx, NY
