For the eighth-straight game, the New York Yankees came away with a victory. They pummeled the Baltimore Orioles for a lopsided 14-2 final.
Chants of “Gio, Gio, Gio…” rang out in Camden Yards (now known as Yankee Stadium South) as the New York Yankees demolished the Baltimore Orioles to complete a three game sweep.
Aided by the run support of 1000 RBIs, James Paxton showed Yankee fans the pitcher that Brian Cashman traded for. For the first time since July 2, The Big Maple did not allow a run to score in the first inning.
James Paxton:
– first time since July 2 he didnt allow a run in 1st inning
– first time since June 21 he didnt allow a baserunner in 1st inning— Katie Sharp (@ktsharp) August 7, 2019
And his dominance over the Orioles didn’t stop there.
Paxton tossed 6.2 innings, giving up only one run and punching out seven. He worked his curveball regularly again, throwing it 30 times and showing his confidence in it as a strikeout pitch. On multiple occasions, Paxton dropped a backdoor hook the just barely caught the left side of the plate.
https://twitter.com/MattHanifan_/status/1159251093458526208?s=20
As we’ve seen from CC Sabathia, that pitch can be a deadly weapon, especially when combined with the ability to run a 96 mph fastball up and in.
https://twitter.com/BarnHasSpoken/status/1159264882354774022?s=20
On the other side of the scorecard, the Yankees offense continued to roll. In the fourth inning, Cameron Maybin opened the scoring with an RBI single. Following a Brett Gardner pop out, Kyle Higashioka cracked a three-run homer to center.
"Higashioka! The Home Run Stroka! And he's getting higgy with it!" pic.twitter.com/JIeNPs3LlN
— John Sterling Calls (@JSterlingCalls) August 8, 2019
The momentum carried into the fifth inning, with Gio Urshela hitting a two-run shot for his 13th homer of the season.
https://twitter.com/KyleNYY/status/1159261574407831552?s=20
The Yankees turned this one into a true blowout in the sixth inning. DJ LeMahieu and Aaron Judge knocked RBI singles before Urshela hit another two-run shot for his second long ball of the night.
"Over the first bullpen, into the second bullpen WOW! Gio Urshela! The most happy fella!" pic.twitter.com/3sNqJBzcf7
— John Sterling Calls (@JSterlingCalls) August 8, 2019
Gardner scraped across another run by hustling out a near double play to give the Yankees an 11-1 lead.
Of course, the Yankees weren’t done there. Maybin and Higashioka both homered in the ninth inning, giving the Yankees 43 home runs at Camden Yards this year and 52 against the Orioles.
For reference, both are MLB records.
Savage of the Game — James Paxton
Certainly, tonight’s savage of the game could go to the offense as a whole. However, all the talk of how the Yankees don’t have the pitching to win in October makes performances like Paxton’s all the more important. If this new curveball-throwing Paxton is the guy we’ll see the rest of the season, the Yankees rotation is in good shape.
