CC Sabbathia got the ball for his final start of the year and blinded the Red Sox again. Aaron Hill, Andrew Benintendi and Xander Bogaerts all struck out swinging in the top of the first. Henry Owens got the ball in the bottom of the first and the Yankees immediately tagged him. Brett Gardner grounded out but Jacoby Ellsbury walked. Jacoby swiped second as Gary Sanchez struck out. Starlin Castro doubled home Ellsbury and Didi Gregorius flied out to end the inning with the Yankees up 1-0.
The Sox failed to respond in the top of the second. David Ortiz whiffed badly but Chris Young singled. Young was erased on the Jackie Bradley Jr force and Ryan Hanigan grounded out to end the inning. Owens recovered in the bottom of the second. Chase Headley grounded out then both Brian McCann and Aaron Hicks struck out to end the inning.
Sabbathia cruised in the top of the third. Travis Shaw grounded out, Deven Marrero struck out and Hill lined out to end the inning. Owens ran into trouble in the bottom of the third. Tyler Austin singled but Gardner lined out. Austin took second on a wild pitch and moved to third on an Ellsbury ground out. Sanchez struck out to end the inning.
The Sox got one in the top of the fourth. Benny The Kid grounded out but Bogaerts blasted a solo shot to tie the game. One last highlight before the season ended. Ortiz worked a walk and that was it for David in New York. Brock Holt pinch ran for him and shocking how this was the end. A meaningless game. Young banged into a double play to end the inning.
Owens returned for the bottom of the fourth and Castro lined out to right. Gregorius popped up but Headley walked and stole second. McCann whiffed to end the inning.
Sabbathia cruised in the top of the fifth. JBJ grounded out but Hanigan singled. Shaw bounced into a double play to end the inning. The Yankees struck back in the bottom of the fifth. Hicks caught Owens asleep with a bunt single but Austin struck out. Gardner popped up but Ellsbury doubled to chase Owens. Henry was on a pitch limit since he hadn't started a game in almost a month. Heath Hembree came in and Sanchez popped up to end the inning.
Sabbathia returned for the top of the sixth and got Marrero to ground out. Hill walked but both Benny The Kid and Bogaerts struck out to end the inning. The Yankees iced the game in the bottom of the sixth. Castro singled but Gregorius flied out. Headley walked to chase Hembree and Robby Scott was brought in to get the lefties. McCann singled to load the bases but Hicks flied out. Austin walked in a run and a wild pitch scored another. Gardner flied out to end the inning but it was now 4-1.
The normal Sox could erase a 3 run lead in a hurry against the Yankees but these are the resting Sox so they did no such thing in the top of the 7th. Holt struck out and Young lined out but JBJ singled. Hanigan grounded out to end the inning. Junichi Tazawa took the mound in the bottom of the seventh. Ellsbury singled but Sanchez struck out. Castro popped up and Gregorius grounded out to end the inning.
Ronald Torreyes took over at second for Castro to begin the top of the eighth. Shaw grounded out and that was it for Sabbathia. Tyler Clippard came in as Marco Hernandez pinch hit for Marrero...and struck out. Big help Marco! Hill flied out to end the inning. Robbie Ross Jr took the mound in the bottom of the eighth. Headley grounded out but McCann walked and scored on the double by Hicks. Austin whiffed but a wild pitch moved Hicks to third. Gardner walked and Mason Williams pinch ran for him. Ellsbury walked to load the bases and that was it for Ross. Noe Ramirez came in and struck out Sanchez to end the inning.
Richard Bleier came in to pitch the top of the ninth. Benny The Kid and Bogaerts flied out and Holt whiffed to end the game. The Yankees beat the lifeless Sox 5-1.
Jackass of the Night is a tough call since nobody was really trying and Henry Owens didn't exactly piss himself. I guess I gotta go with Heath Hembree for letting the game get out of reach. He was charged with 2 runs in just 2/3 of an inning.
The Good:
David Ortiz walked in his last at bat in Yankee Stadium. Chris Young, Jackie Bradley Jr and Ryan Hanigan were all 1 for 3. Junichi Tazawa pitched a scoreless 7th inning. Noe Ramirez got the last out of the eighth.
The Bad:
Andrew Benintendi was 0 for 4 with two strikeouts. Brock Holt struck out twice in his two at-bats. Travis Shaw was 0 for 3. Deven Marrero was 0 for 2 with a strike out. Marco Hernandez struck out in his plate appearance. Robby Scott allowed both inherited runners to score in his 2/3 of an inning. Robby Ross Jr allowed a run off a hit and 3 walks.
The Ugly:
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Aaron Hill was 0 for 3 but walked. Xander Bogaerts was just 1 for 4 but made his hit count with his 21st home run of the season. Henry Owens took the loss but wasn't pitching that badly. He lasted 4 2/3 innings allowing 2 runs on 4 hits and 2 walks while striking out 6.
Final Thoughts:
Talk about a strategic loss. The Sox treated this game as a throwaway and they sure played like it. This is as lifeless as I've seen them in a while. At least when Kevin Gausaman shut them down, his pitches were crisp and the Sox were making good contact...but this wasn't even close. They let the fat man beat them like it was easy. Still, it was a good loss as it puts them further back of Texas and closer to a playoff date with Cleveland. Not much else to say really other than that concludes the road record for the Red Sox this year. They went 46-35 on the season, trailing only the St. Louis Cardinals for the best in baseball. The Sox return home for their final 3 games against the Toronto Blue Jays. Marco Estrada (9-9) goes up against Rick Porcello (22-4, 3.11 ERA). The Jays are still fighting for a wild card spot while Porcello is looking to build his Cy Young case so both teams will be trying.
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