Battle between the Yankees and the Orioles adds spice to the decisive AL East series
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Sport in Seriousness
BALTIMORE – Brandon Hyde, the former minor league catcher turned manager, charged toward the New York Yankees dugout, digging his heels into the opposition for a bigger lead and driving his legs forward, but was thwarted by a backup catcher who had begun the day by celebrating his 25th birthday and ended it by putting out the fireworks, not lighting them.
“I thought it was a cool birthday,” Austin Wells said later Friday night, the chaos at the end of the Yankees’ 4-1 victory over the Baltimore Orioles long behind him.
“I tried to limit the damage.”
That’s an appropriate mood for both the bench-clearing brawl that spiraled out of control for the remainder of the ninth inning and a Yankees team that instills fear and terror in its fans.
They had lost or tied their last eight series since mid-June, when they came to Camden Yards looking to cut Baltimore’s two-game lead in the American League East before the teams head to the All-Star break on Sunday.
They were able to halve that deficit on Friday, inadvertently adding fuel to the fire of a rivalry that is becoming epic on and off the field.
“The intensity level has been pretty consistent all year,” said Yankees ace Gerrit Cole, the winning pitcher on Friday.
“So I assume it will stay that way.”
The fire was ignited a month ago in the Bronx when Yankees superstar Aaron Judge was hit in the hand by a pitch but escaped serious injury on a night when second baseman Gleyber Torres was also wearing a baseball cap.
Yankees starter Nestor Cortes responded by circling the tower of Orioles All-Star shortstop Gunnar Henderson; a day later, reliever Victor Gonzalez hit Henderson in the shoulder.
This week, the higher ground was taken in the Bronx and the teams met in Baltimore with the Orioles leading the season series 5-2. It seemed for all the world that the Yankees would win the opener uneventfully, as Cole, pitching his best game since recovering from an elbow injury, and Judge, hitting his 33rd home run, were business as usual.
And then the rain came just in time for the ninth inning, making a muggy, 27-degree night wet. Yankees closer Clay Holmes struck out Jordan Westburg for the first out of the inning, but when he tried to throw a front-door sinker to left-hander Heston Kjerstad, he pulled a bad line.
The 97-mile-per-hour pitch flew high and inward, and the freshman Kjerstad couldn’t move, ducking just enough to let the ball land at the very bottom of his helmet. He lay in the batter’s box for a few moments, got up, was examined by trainer Brian Ebel and stalked to first base before being redirected to the dugout; he will be in concussion protocol on Saturday.
Holmes wanted to express his impression that it was not intentional. Hyde did not seem receptive to these comments.
Someone—coach, player, or someone else—said something from the Yankees’ dugout, and Hyde, his bunny ears probably perked up for such a comment, turned and strode briskly toward the Yankees’ dugout.
“I was just walking back and hearing stuff from their dugout, so I just reacted the way I did,” Hyde said. “I saw them pointing at me and the whole thing, so I just reacted the way I did.”
And a touch of chaos entered the race for the championship.
Hyde didn’t get much further than the left-handed batter’s box when Wells – who was only playing in the game because Jose Trevino injured his quadriceps – interfered.
A mosh pit formed around them, the bullpens came running and words were exchanged – “You have to be there (to know),” Judge said with a grin.
“Anytime a player gets hit in the head, emotions run high,” said Orioles outfielder Austin Hays, who replaced Kjerstad on the bases. “I don’t think Clay was trying to hit Heston in the head right there. He probably just wanted to come in, a front-door sinker, and he missed.”
“The ball hit Heston so hard. I really hope he’s OK. We’ll pray tonight. Anytime you see players getting hit on the hands and head, it’s dangerous and can cause them to miss games.
“Emotions always run high when you see a guy get hit up top. I think that’s what you saw here.”
There were hardly any objections from the other side in this regard.
“I think it was totally understandable,” Cole said. “Dude, it’s so wet out there tonight. Everybody out there knows it was tough to grab the baseball tonight. The guy got hit in the head.”
“So it’s understandable that Brandon was angry. And he defends his players.”
Judge said: “He’s their manager. He’s been a great manager for them for a number of years. He’s always been there for his guys, so I think he’ll stand up for his team in a situation like this.”
“I have a lot of respect for him and what he does. I think if there’s a moment when you have to stand up…”
“I thought he looked like our ace”
The series will resume on Saturday, but Hyde will almost certainly be out of the game. A suspension from Major League Baseball is likely, and managers cannot appeal such disciplinary action.
If hostility arises, coach Fredi Gonzalez will be in charge, but the teams’ larger goals may be more important than overt displays of machismo or vigilantism.
“I don’t think so. There’s too much at stake to get involved in,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “We have to play well, we have to win the games.”
“The same goes for them. Hopefully we can get out there and play baseball tomorrow.”
They’ll have a hard time matching Friday’s artistry. Cole, the reigning Cy Young Award winner who is making his fifth start this season, confirmed that the last month was actually his personal spring training, rebuilding his arm strength after a shock elbow forced him to the sidelines in the first half.
He reached the 100-pitch mark in the sixth inning for the first time this season, fighting back from a 3-0 count to freeze Henderson with a curveball and leave the tying run on base in the third inning, starting a streak of 11 consecutive batters retired.
He increased the velocity of his fastball to 99 miles per hour, finished the evening with a nifty comebacker jump shot, and left a depleted bullpen with only nine outs to process.
“I thought he looked like our ace,” Boone said. “He had a certain bite, but he was having fun. It was a joy to watch him throw.”
“He’s one of the best pitchers of his generation. He’s an ace and he loves challenges, he loves competition. It was fun to watch him.”
And my goodness, the Yankees really needed that.
Their rotation was excellent for the first month of the season, then rookie Luis Gil took the torch in a dominant May and was named AL Pitcher of the Month. But when Cole returned, they collapsed.
Gil? He has a 7.00 ERA in his last six starts, after a 0.60 in his previous six. Carlos Rodon has a 10.57 ERA in his last five starts, after a run in 14 starts and a 2.93 ERA. Not coincidentally, the Yankees were 11-3 in his good stretch and 0-5 in his bad.
boiling point
But the Orioles are also lagging behind. They were beaten at home for the first time in three years this week by the Chicago Cubs. On Friday, they gave the ball to Cade Povich, a left-hander making his seventh major league start.
“I think we’ll find out in the first inning. His first innings were a little rough,” Hyde said before the game. “He had trouble with his control.”
You could say that. Povich walked five batters in his 5⅓-inning appearance and allowed Judge’s massive home run over the big wall in left. The Orioles learned from that: Judge hit an 0-2 curveball over the fence, but had exactly one strikeout in his four other at-bat appearances, all of which ended in walks.
Baltimore’s vaunted offense is no better. The Orioles have a .182 batting average (13 of 82) with runners in scoring position in ten games this month and have failed to extend their lead over the Yankees to more than three games, despite New York losing seven of nine games.
Now it comes down to one game. Someone will go into the break with at least a one-game lead, and both teams are almost certain to qualify for the playoffs.
It will only be clear in about three months who will be crowned East champion. The next step will take place on Saturday, probably in a quieter environment.
“I know some of their guys got hit by throws. They got us,” Judge said.
“It was kind of boiling over there.”
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