MLB’s weather shuffle has turned the Yankees-Red Sox finish line into a strange little game of rest roulette, and for once it looks like New York may come out with the cleaner hand.
What was supposed to be a simple final stretch has been bent all out of shape by rain and a looming Nor’easter, forcing both clubs into doubleheader mode before the weekend gets any uglier. The Yankees’ Saturday game got pulled forward to Friday, and Boston has been dragged into its own logistical mess as it tries to get through its final series with the Cubs while the weather keeps messing with the calendar.
That setup matters because it appears to leave the Yankees with a better recovery window before Tuesday’s Wild Card Game 1. They could have Saturday, Sunday, and Monday off before the postseason opener, where any one of three starting pitchers could get the ball. It’s a messy little advantage, but in October, messy counts.
Boston’s path is more complicated. The Red Sox still have to finish the series against the Cubs for seeding, and that game may be played in Tampa at Tropicana Field. As of now, the tentative start time is Sunday at 3:05 PM.
The second game of Boston’s Friday doubleheader was also pushed up a half hour to 5:35 PM so the club can try to beat the rain. That at least keeps the Sox from stumbling into some kind of accidental rest bonanza, and it gives the Yankees a chance to match their Friday workload before any possible Trop trip.
None of this is exactly clean, and that’s the point. MLB has spent the week trying to flatten out the weather edge and avoid handing either side a weirdly unfair break. The same kind of thinking has shown up elsewhere, too, with the Padres and Phillies backing away from a plan to shift their games to Chicago for extra home dates instead of neutral-site settings.
So the race to the finish may not be decided by one team being exhausted and the other fresh. It may end up much more even than that. The Yankees may have the clearer rest path, but the weather is doing its best to make sure nobody gets too comfortable.
In Other News...
Yankees May Get A Huge Opening In Game 1 Vs Boston
A week after suffering a hand injury, Boston first baseman Wilson Contreras is still trying to work his way back into the lineup ahead of Game 1 of the Wild Card series against the Yankees. He has not been able to swing over the last two days, though he has continued working with trainers in an effort to get the soreness down and regain enough comfort to play.
Red Sox manager Chad Tracy said Contreras has shown subtle improvement, but the club still does not have a firm answer on his status for the opener. For the Yankees, that uncertainty could matter, because Boston would be facing one of its key postseason bats while also trying to piece together an infield plan on short notice. [Read more 🡒]
Yankees May Have Found Their Aaron Judge Stopgap At Last
For a Yankees club still adjusting without Aaron Judge in the lineup, rookie George Lombard Jr. gave the offense a much-needed lift against the Rays. He was involved in the comeback from the start, producing runs with both his legs and his bat and showing the kind of all-around impact New York has been searching for as it tries to keep the attack moving.
Lombard also delivered the biggest swing of the night with a two-run homer, and he finished directly involved in four of the six runs the Yankees scored. It was the sort of performance that not only helped seal a win, but also offered a glimpse of a young player stepping into a far larger role while the captain remains out. [Read more 🡒]
Yankees Doubleheader Moves Just Raised A Bigger Playoff Question
Brendan Beck got the chance to open the Yankees doubleheader in Game 1, but the rookie right-hander could not hold things together long enough to steady the day. He was hit for seven runs over five innings in a loss, and the club quickly sent him back to the minors after the outing, leaving him with an 0-2 record and a 9.95 ERA in four games.
The move that followed only sharpened the larger question hanging over the Yankees pitching depth. Alexander Cornielle, a Triple-A arm with no major league experience, was brought up to take Becks place, while reliever Fernando Cruz was transferred to the 60-day injured list, another sign that the staffs options are getting thinner at an awkward time. For a team trying to piece together innings, the doubleheader shuffle felt less like a one-day adjustment than a reminder that the rotation and bullpen are still being stretched in ways that could matter in October. [Read more 🡒]