NEW YORK — If there is a common theme for the Atlanta Braves and New York Yankees through two games at sweltering Yankee Stadium
Cheap Josh Allen Jersey , it is a matter of inches for fly balls hit to right field and right-center field.
Heading into Wednesday afternoon’s series finale, the teams have combined to hit nine homers with both teams capitalizing on dimensions to right and
right-center.
On Monday, Aaron Judge made a half-swing and golfed a first-inning homer off Anibal Sanchez down the right-field line, where it is 314 feet, but the Braves
wound up getting a 5-3 victory by also capitalizing on the dimensions. Rookie
Ronald Acuna Jr. hit a two-run homer in the 11th off David Robertson over
Judge’s leaping attempt and into the front row of the right-center field
seats.
A night later, both teams capitalized again as the Yankees evened the series with an 8-5 victory.
Aaron Hicks homered down the right-field line in the first inning off left-hander Sean Newcomb and Giancarlo Stanton homered just inside the
right-field foul pole in the eighth off Evan Phillips.
“Balls get kind of sucked up out there so that’s just frustrating,” Newcomb said after pitching a season-low 2 1/3 innings.
Stanton was also involved in two straight plays in right-center in the seventh. First, he appeared shaken up after crashing into the wall in an attempt
to catch Nick Markakis’ 364-foot two-run homer off Adam Warren but he stayed in
to make a leaping catch on Kurt Suzuki’s 360-foot fly ball.
“You just never know here with fly balls that are homers,” Atlanta manager Brian Snitker said.
Still, with both teams benefiting and getting burned by the dimensions, the first two games have been tight ballgames decided in the late innings. The teams
have combined for 21 runs and 38 hits in a combined seven hours
http://www.jetsauthorizedshops.com/authentic-thomas-rawls-jersey , 39 minutes while playing in humid conditions.
“We’re obviously capable of those nights where we have a big night and can run away from a team, but we’ve seen time and time again that we can scratch and
claw our way,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “I think the one thing about
this club that they’ve shown through the first 80-plus games is that we’ve shown
an ability to win games in a lot of different ways.”
After neither team received a lengthy start and Atlanta will hope for some distance from Julio Teheran while New York is seeking the same from CC
Sabathia.
Regardless of how long their starters go, both teams will have different situations with their closers.
Atlanta’s Arodys Vizcaino is expected to be available for a save situation after being activated off the disabled list Tuesday. He experienced shoulder
discomfort after pitching four times in a span of five days from June 13-17,
resulting in two weeks on the DL.
New York’s Aroldis Chapman has pitched three straight days for the first time all season. While he has thrown 48 pitches in those outings, it would seem
unlikely the Yankees would use him for a save situation Wednesday.
Sabathia will continue his climb up various leaderboards. Sabathia is getting his first chance to tie Hall of Famer Juan Marichal for 55th place on the
all-time wins list with at 243.
Sabathia is 5-3 with a 3.02 ERA and is the 12th pitcher to get at least 125 wins with the Yankees. Sabathia also has 1,519 strikeouts for the Yankees and is
seven away from tying Red Ruffing for fourth on the team’s all-time list.
Sabathia last pitched Friday in an 8-1 victory over the Boston Red Sox when he allowed one run and six hits in seven innings.
Sabathia is 3-1 with a 3.31 ERA in four career starts against Atlanta.
Sabathia’s start will take place before the Yankees focus on events in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, where Masahiro Tanaka will make a rehab start. Tanaka has
been out since injuring both hamstrings running the bases June 8 against the
Mets but said Monday he feels better and could have started in the majors
Wednesday.
Teheran (6-5, 4.21 ERA) is making his 17th and seeking consecutive wins for the first time in nearly two months.
Teheran was 4-0 with a 2.06 ERA in six starts from April 16-May 14. He is 2-4 with a 5.12 ERA in seven outings since.
Teheran’s last two wins have been scoreless outings. He fanned 11 in six scoreless innings June 17 against San Diego but then gave up seven runs in 4 2/3
innings June 23 against Baltimore before pitching six scoreless innings Friday
at St. Louis.
Teheran is making his fourth start since a brief absence because of a thumb contusion that impacted his velocity. In his last start, he walked the first two
hitters but settled down and retired 15 of the next 16 hitters.
“Velocity is better,” Snitker said. “With the exception on an inning here
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Teheran will be making his second career start against the Yankees. In a 20-6 loss in Atlanta on Aug. 30, 2015, he allowed eight runs on nine hits in 4 1/3
innings but the only Yankees he faced still on the team are Brett Gardner, Greg
Bird and Didi Gregorius.
Kyle Seager was asked before Thursday’s series opener against the Boston Red Sox what it’s like to face a knuckleball pitcher.
A look of horror crossed the face of the Seattle Mariners third baseman.
“Is that tonight?” Seager asked.
Told the Mariners wouldn’t be facing Steven Wright until Saturday’s game in Seattle, Seager exhaled.
“Wow, don’t scare me like that,” said Seager, who could be excused for losing track as his wife is expecting their third child.
Seager said he has faced knuckleballers Wright, R.A. Dickey and Tim Wakefield during his career. He is 2-for-6 against Wright.
“It’s just a difficult pitch, one you don’t see that often
Dontae Johnson Color Rush Jersey ,” Seager said. “They all throw it a little different; it goes all over the place. It can be fun, you just have to
laugh at it a little bit.”
Mariners first baseman Ryon Healy, whose locker is next to Seager’s in the home clubhouse at Safeco Field, said he got his first major-league hit off
Dickey.
“My hitting coach said don’t worry about your approach,” said Healy, who was with the Oakland Athletics at the time. “Just swing and hope it’s in the strike
zone.”
Wright (2-0, 1.21 ERA) is 2-1 with a 1.32 ERA is three career appearances against the Mariners, including one start.
This will be Wright’s third start of the season. He hasn’t allowed an earned run in the previous two. He post a 6-0 victory over Detroit on June 5 in which
he allowed two hits in seven innings with three walks and six strikeouts. He
gave up four hits in 6 2/3 innings in a no-decision on Monday at Baltimore, when
he walked three and struck out five in a 2-0, 12-inning Red Sox victory.
“Out of the bullpen he was lights out, and then these past two starts have been pretty unreal
Malik Jefferson Color Rush Jersey ,” Red Sox utility man Brock Holt told NESN. “That knuckleball dances around. It’s funny when you’re playing defense
behind him and guys get on, they let you know how much it moves. It’s a
difficult pitch to hit and he’s been able to throw strikes with it.”
Wright hasn’t allowed a run in his past 22 2/3 innings, the longest active streak in the majors.
“The thing with knuckleballs is people think you throw just one knuckleball, but the thing is, they’re big-league hitters,” Wright said. “The biggest thing
is timing, and a pitcher’s got to disrupt their timing. So, for me, especially
as a starter … I really just try to go back and forth with the velocity.”
The Mariners are scheduled to start left-hander Wade LeBlanc (2-0, 3.00), who has a 6.00 ERA but no decisions in two career starts against Boston.
LeBlanc
http://www.lionsauthorizedshops.com/authentic-kerryon-johnson-jersey , in his second stint with the Mariners, hasn’t lost in 16 starts for Seattle,
tied for the fifth-longest such streak for a pitcher starting his tenure with a
team in the live-ball era. LeBlanc is tied with former San Francisco starter
Noah Lowry (2004-05), trailing only the New York Yankees’ Whitey Ford (22 starts
in 1950-53), Montreal’s Kirk Rueter (22, 1993-94), Cincinnati’s Brooks Lawrence
(18, 1956) and the Yankees’ Jim Coates (17, 1959-60).
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