Rockies Couldn't Keep Yankees From Late-Game Rally
NEW YORK (The Sports Xchange)- Starlin Castro led off the bottom of the ninth with a home run as the New York Yankees blew an early four-run deficit and rallied for a 9-8 victory over the Colorado Rockies on Wednesday afternoon.
The Yankees recorded their second walk-off win of the season and won for the fourth time in their last 10 games when Castro drove an 0-1 breaking ball from Jason Motte (0-1) into the left field seats.
It was Castro's sixth career game-ending hit and first walk off home run. After getting the hit, Castro was mobbed at the plate by his teammates and was given a Gatorade shower by Didi Gregorius and Brett Gardner while conducting an on-field interview.
The Yankees used their hard-throwing late-inning trio of Dellin Betances, Andrew Miller and Aroldis Chapman. They combined to get six strikeouts and Chapman (1-0) picked up the win by striking out DJ LeMahieu on a 102-mph pitch.
Before the dramatics of the ninth, the Yankees left the bases loaded in the seventh against Miguel Castro after tying the game on a three-run home run Carlos Beltran and an RBI single by Gregorius. They were unable to score with two on and one out in the eighth off Gonzalez German as Alex Rodriguez heard boos for a strikeout and Brian McCann grounded out.
The comeback was needed because the Yankees were unable to make Chase Headley's second-inning grand slam hold up.
Colorado halved the lead on a two-run single by Charlie Blackmon in the third and took a 5-4 lead on Nick Hundley's long three-run homer in the fourth. The Rockies added three runs in the fifth on a double by Trevor Story and a two-run homer by Ryan Raburn off Anthony Swarzak.
Sabathia began the day with a 2.20 ERA but finished it at 2.71 after allowing six runs (five earned) and seven hits in 4 1/3 innings. It was Sabathia's shortest non-injury start since going 2 1/3 innings May 23, 2015 against Texas.
Jon Gray allowed four runs and three hits over four-plus innings. He left the game after hitting Beltran with a pitch after the Rockies deemed he could not continue due to an undisclosed injury.
NOTES: New York 1B Mark Teixeira, who will play his second rehab game Wednesday night for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes Barre told reporters there Tuesday his "knee held up good" and he was comfortable moving around in the field and the batter's box". ... Colorado RHP Adam Ottavino (Tommy John surgery) threw 12 pitches in the seventh inning for Triple-A Albuquerque on Tuesday. Manager Walt Weiss did not get a report on the outing but said he expects a positive result. ... For the second straight game against a right-handed starting pitcher, Yankees 1B Rob Refsnyder played over left-handed hitting Ike Davis, who is 3-for-14 in six games. Asked about it, manager Joe Girardi said: "I like the way that he's been playing and it's why I'm sticking with him." ... Rockies OF Gerardo Parra (sprained ankle) is expected to have his walking boot removed for good Thursday when the team returns home.
