Red Sox at Yankees
The Boston Red Sox struck first in a key American League East battle and pulled within one game of the first-place New York Yankees with a 5-4 win in Tuesday's series opener. The Red Sox will try to join the Yankees atop the division when they visit New York for the second of the three-game series on Wednesday.
Boston is surging with 11 wins in its last 15 games and displayed its power both at the plate and on the mound in Tuesday's triumph. The Red Sox got home runs from Mitch Moreland, Andrew Benintendi and Hanley Ramirez while Joe Kelly, Matt Barnes and Craig Kimbrel took turns approaching and reach 100 mph on the radar gun over the final three innings to seal the tight win. The Yankees have dropped five of their last eight games and could not come up with the big hits from the biggest part of the order on Tuesday as slugging sensation Aaron Judge struck out against Kelly in the seventh and versus Kimbrel in the ninth. Judge will try to add to his major league home run lead on Wednesday against Red Sox right-hander Rick Porcello, who goes up against CC Sabathia in a battle of former Cy Young Award winners.
TV: 7:05 p.m. ET, MLB Network, NESN (Boston), YES (New York)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Red Sox RH Rick Porcello (3-7, 4.24 ERA) vs. Yankees LH CC Sabathia (6-2, 4.12)
Porcello posted a quality start in each of his last two outings but suffered the loss in both while yielding a total of five runs and 19 hits in 12 1/3 innings. The New Jersey native surrendered at least eight hits in each of his last five turns and is 1-3 in that span. Porcello held New York to five hits in 6 2/3 innings on April 26 but issued four walks and was charged with three runs - two earned - in a loss.
Sabathia is a lot closer to his Cy Young form with wins in four straight starts, during which he allowed a total of four earned runs in 24 1/3 innings. The California native pumped up his strikeout numbers with 22 in 17 1/3 innings across his last three turns. Sabathia is 13-13 with a 4.48 ERA in 35 career starts against the Red Sox, including 1-1 last season.
WALK-OFFS
1. Yankees LHP Aroldis Chapman (shoulder) is targeting a mid-June return date from the 10-day DL.
2. Benintendi is 5-for-8 with three home runs in his last two games - one more hit than he managed in his previous 10 outings combined.
3. New York DH Matt Holliday hit safely in each of the last seven games and has six extra-base hits in that span.