In a game packed with noise and momentum swings, the sixth inning of Game 2 carried its own little time capsule. George Lombard Jr. and Garrett Crochet met again, and this time the Yankees rookie came through with the kind of hit that can turn a game sideways in a hurry.
New York was clinging to a one-run lead when Boston manager Chad Tracy went to Crochet out of the bullpen, a move that looked like it might put the Red Sox in position to seize control. Instead, two massive misplays from Adley Rutschman blew that opening apart, and the inning started unraveling fast. Then Lombard Jr. stepped in and lined a 2-2 fastball from Crochet into center field for an RBI single, the hit that helped trigger a six-run Yankees rally and sent Boston spinning.
That single didn’t just add a run. It was the spark for a blowout and a harsh ending to Crochet’s first outing since late-April.
The moment carried extra weight because this wasn’t the first time these two had crossed paths in 2026. On March 4 at JetBlue Park at Fenway South in Fort Myers, Florida, Lombard Jr. had already tagged Crochet, crushing the left-hander’s fourth pitch of the game over the Green Monster replica for a solo homer. So when he came through again in October, it felt less like a coincidence than a continuation.
The numbers behind Crochet’s season make the matchup even more striking. He entered 2026 as Boston’s clear ace after finishing as the runner up in the 2025 Cy Young Award race, piling up 255 strikeouts in 205.1 innings pitched and producing a 5.7 fWAR season.
But his year never really settled in. He put up a 6.30 ERA through six starts, then was shut down in April with shoulder inflammation and spent the rest of the regular season on the IL.
After months of rehab, Crochet made it back onto the Red Sox postseason roster, and the setup seemed almost too neat: a chance to face the Yankees, a chance to answer for a lost season, a chance at some redemption. Instead, Lombard Jr. beat him again.
For the rookie shortstop, the hit was a clutch piece of the rally. For Crochet, it was another reminder of how rough the year had become. And with these two clubs tied together year after year in the AL East, there’s a good chance this won’t be the last chapter in their head-to-head story.
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