Gardner, Torres Spark Yankees' Rally In Sloppy Win Over Astros
NEW YORK (AP) — Brett Gardner tied it with his second homer of the game, a one-out, two-run drive in the ninth inning, Gleyber Torres hit a winning single in the 10th and the New York Yankees rallied to beat the Houston Astros 6-5 Tuesday night.
The Yankees won despite making five errors — including two by Torres at second base — for the first time since 2014. They also came up with a startling defensive play in the 10th when Aroldis Chapman threw a 100 mph fastball to the backstop that took a fortuitous carom to catcher Gary Sanchez, who threw out Tony Kemp at third base.
Charlie Morton appeared set to win his 11th straight decision and become the American League's first eight-game winner. Manager A.J. Hinch chose not to use closer Ken Giles for the third straight day and sent Chris Devenski to the mound with a 5-3 lead for the bottom of the ninth.
Miguel Anjudar walked, Torres struck out and Gardner drove a fastball just over a leaping George Springer at the right-field wall for his third home run in four games.
Aaron Judge followed with a double and Giancarlo Stanton reached on a two-out infield single that ended an 0-for-16 slide before Devenski struck out Sanchez.
Chapman (2-0) walked Kemp with two outs in the 10th, threw a wild pitch with Springer at the plate and nearly hurled another one. But Sanchez caught the pitch that ricocheted off the top of the low wall behind the plate and fired a perfect throw to Andujar for the tag.
Andujar doubled against Brad Peacock (1-3) with two outs in the 10th, and Torres lined an opposite-field single to right. Andujar slid in as Springer's throw was wide to the first-base side, and Torres raised his hands and then his helmet after rounding first base.
Pitcher CC Sabathia, Andujar and Sanchez also made errors in the Yankees' worst-fielding game since July 21, 2014, against Texas.
Torres has four errors in four games and six in 32 games since his big league debut. New York's two wild pitches raised the total with Sanchez behind the plate to a major league-high 30.
Playing their 51st game, the Yankees for the first time started their projected lineup heading into spring training. While first baseman Greg Bird returned from ankle surgery Saturday, a regular was rested in each of the previous three games.
Morton, who is 7-0 with a 2.26 ERA and has not lost a regular-season game since Sept. 9, struck out 10 and walked one in six innings. He allowed eight hits that included a leadoff home run by Gardner in the first and a solo drive by Judge in the fifth. Mixing a 97 mph fastball with a sharp curveball that dropped in on the corners, the 34-year-old right-hander got five called strikeouts from plate umpire Tripp Gibson.
Evan Gattis had a pair of RBIs for the Astros, including a tying home run starting the second. He put the Astros in front in Game 7 of last year's AL Championship Series with a fourth-inning home run off Sabathia.
Sabathia allowed five runs — three earned — and eight hits in five innings.
Torres had a tiebreaking single in the second, but Marwin Gonzalez split the outfielders with a two-run double that rolled to the warning track in left-center and put the Astros ahead 3-2 in the fourth.
Judge's home run, which bounced out of the second deck in right, was his 71st in 234 games and tied Ryan Howard for the fastest to reach the mark.
PUNCHOUTS
Gibson had eight called strikeouts, including six against the Yankees.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Astros: C Brian McCann was put on the 10-day DL because of right knee soreness and returned to Houston, making Max Stassi the starting catcher. C Tim Federowicz was brought up from Triple-A Fresno.
UP NEXT
RHP Luis Severino (7-1, 2.28) starts for New York in Wednesday's series finale and LHP Dallas Keuchel (3-6, 3.39) for Houston. Severino is 5-0 with a 1.87 ERA in his last eight starts. Keuchel is 6-4 with a 1.82 ERA in 10 outings against the Yankees, including the postseason.
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