DJ LeMahieu and Aaron Hicks each provided a pair of RBI’s as their New York Yankees captured a 4-1 win over their hated rivals.
The tri-state area’s rains have dissipated, but DJ LeMahieu and Aaron Hicks provided thunder for the New York Yankees nonetheless.
The pair combined for the entirety of the Yankees’ offense, fueling a 4-1 victory on Friday night at Yankee Stadium. LeMahieu had tied the game in the third inning with a one-run double in the third and a solo home run in the fifth.
A sparkler by DJ LeMahieu pic.twitter.com/3F8S1tOWrR
— David Mendelsohn (@BigBabyDavid_) May 31, 2019
DJ LeMahieu owns Chris Sale tonight ?
(via @Yankees) pic.twitter.com/a94k76M61h
— SNY (@SNYtv) June 1, 2019
The second baseman would go on to score, along with Brett Gardner, after his third inning tally, as Hicks drove them home on a single two batters later.
Is anyone still saying Aaron Hicks isn't clutch? If so, tell those people to take the nearest seat. pic.twitter.com/0PKtuwOh81
— Kyle ⚾️ (@KyleNYY) June 1, 2019
The prosperous hits came against Boston starter Chris Sale (L, 1-7). Known for his success against the Yankees, Sale entered the game with a 1.87 ERA against the team in 18 appearances. He wound up going six innings, striking out 10. Sale is 0-2 against the Yankees this season, having also been charged with a loss in The Bronx on April 16.
New York (37-19) countered with a strong pitching effort that limited Boston (29-28) to five hits. J.A. Happ (W, 5-3) began the evening with five frames that yielded three hits. His lone costly blemish was a second-inning solo shot to Rafael Devers. The inning also featured an infield single from Jackie Bradley Jr., but Happ went on to retire the next seven Boston batters.
He ran into trouble in his last stanza, letting up a leadoff single to Eduardo Nunez. The ex-Yankee would advance to second base on Bradley’s groundout before Happ struck out Sandy Leon and intentionally walked Mookie Betts. Boston’s threat was ended by Gary Sanchez, who picked off Nunez at second base.
An absolute bullet by Gary Sanchez ? pic.twitter.com/uyJwLBsCs7
— Baseball Bros (@BaseballBros) June 1, 2019
From there, Adam Ottavino, Tommy Kahnle, Zack Britton, and Aroldis Chapman each pitched a scoreless inning to preserve the win. Their work helped Happ earned his fourth win in his last five starts.
New York’s lead in the AL East went back to two games after Tampa Bay lost their opener against Minnesota. Boston lost their third in a row and now trails the Yankees by 8.5 games for the division
The Yankees’ series with Boston continues on Saturday night (7:15 p.m., Fox). Domingo German (9-1, 3.43 ERA) goes up on the mound against Boston’s Rick Porcello (4-4, 4.41 ERA).
