Castro, Gregorius HRs Help Yankees Beat Orioles 7-4
BALTIMORE (AP) — Starlin Castro homered and drove in three runs, Didi Gregorius also went deep and the New York Yankees fueled their playoff push with a 7-4 victory over the Baltimore Orioles on Monday.
After spotting the Orioles an early lead, New York bounced back for its fourth win in five games. The Yankees enhanced their position atop the AL wild-card race — they began the day 3 ½ games behind AL East-leading Boston.
Aaron Judge drew a career-high four walks, singled and scored a run to help the Yankees extend their wild-card lead over Baltimore to 4 ½ games.
The Yankees played without catcher Gary Sanchez, who began serving a suspension that was reduced to three games from four. The MLB suspension stemmed from an Aug. 24 brawl during a game against Detroit.
Tim Beckham, Chris Davis and Welington Castillo homered for the Orioles, who have lost three of five following a seven-game winning streak.
Chad Green (3-0) struck out four in 2 1/3 innings after starter Jordan Montgomery got two outs in the fifth.
Dylan Bundy (13-9) gave up five runs, five hits and four walks in four-plus innings. It was a miserable encore to his previous effort, a one-hit masterpiece against Seattle in his first career complete game.
Held hitless through three innings and trailing 3-0, the Yankees finally solved Bundy in the fourth. Castro led off with a single, Gregorius homered and Bundy walked two of the next three batters before Jacoby Ellsbury hit an RBI single.
Bundy's outing ended in the fifth, when Castro hit a two-run drive for a 5-3 lead. Castro added an RBI single in a two-run sixth.
Beckham hit his third leadoff homer of the season and Davis made it 3-0 in the second with an opposite-field fly that barely cleared the outstretched glove of leaping left fielder Brett Gardner.
SHIRT SHOT
Although Beckham has been an Oriole for only five weeks, the team honored the shortstop by giving fans T-shirts with his name and number. He celebrated the occasion with his seventh home run since joining the team on July 31.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Yankees: With CF Aaron Hicks (left oblique strain) sent to the 10-day disabled list Sunday, manager Joe Girardi said either Tyler Wade (who was recalled Monday) or Ronald Torreyes could serve as the fourth outfielder. "I think Tyler's played a little bit more in the outfield," Girardi said. "But if you ever pay attention to Torreyes during BP, he probably catches more fly balls than anybody we got."
Orioles: If Craig Gentry's fractured middle finger heals quickly enough, the OF could come off the DL next week in Toronto and be used as a pinch runner, manager Buck Showalter said.
UP NEXT
Yankees: LHP CC Sabathia (11-5, 3.71) starts Tuesday night. He's pitched at least six innings and allowed two runs or fewer in each of his last three starts.
Orioles: Jeremy Hellickson (2-3, 6.55 ERA) makes his seventh start with Baltimore. He's 4-2 with a 3.21 ERA lifetime against the Yankees.
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