HOUSTON — The Yankees have played just two games into their young season, but they’ve wasted no time packing in drama.
On Friday night at Minute Maid Park, the Yankees came from behind to defeat the Astros for the second time in as many days. This time, they waited for the score in the 6th inning, held on to their lead, and ran away with it for a 7-1 victory. .
On the way there, Carlos Rodon walked a tightrope in his season debut, two-way star Juan Soto overcame an injury scare, but Gleyber Torres couldn’t make it and Oswaldo Cabrera had four hits and three RBIs. He built up his skills and scored a tough RBI in the 8th inning. It turned into laughter.
Cabrera and Soto’s late heroics helped the Yankees start the season 2-0 and secure at least a four-game divisional berth.
“You can see that all of my teammates are trying to accomplish big things and show that they’re never going to give up,” said Cabrera, who went 2-for-4 with a game-tying home run in the opening game.
Astros right-hander Cristian Javier kept the Yankees scoreless until the 6th inning, but they mounted a fierce attack against Houston’s bullpen with tougher at-bats in the 7th, 8th, and 9th innings.
By the end of the night, chants of “Let’s go Yankees” rang out in enemy territory.
“I’ve been trying to do that since spring training,” Soto, who went 3-for-4 with one RBI and one walk, said of the overall quality of his at-bats. “We’ve been focused on getting good at-bats for everyone. Don’t give up at-bats and try to hit deep. [in the at-bat] And try to make the best decisions at the right time. I think it’s working well so far. ”
Soto also added his second defensive gem in recent days, making a spectacular sliding catch to right-center field in the bottom of the seventh inning, just after the Yankees had taken a 2-1 lead, to help save the day. .
“That guy is really good,” Rodon said after allowing one run in a gutsy 4¹/₃ innings. “At this point, you would think we signed him for his defense. Obviously, there were some big hits and some big walks and some great defensive plays. That guy. It was wonderful.”
Soto showed no ill effects from twisting his ankle while rounding the bases in the third inning, although he said it hurt in the moment but got better as the night went on.
“I’m playing [Saturday]” Soto said.
After a one-out walk by Anthony Volpe and Austin Wells tied the game in the seventh inning, Cabrera hit a reverse single to tie the game.
Then, after Torres was hit in the right thumb by a 93 mph fastball (he was ejected in the bottom of the inning), Soto walked to load the bases and make it 2-1.
In the eighth inning, the Astros gave the Yankees two throwing errors, opening the floodgates for a four-run inning.
Cabrera closed out the game with a two-run hit over center field, making it another strong night for the Yankees’ No. 9 hitter.
“It was awesome,” coach Aaron Boone said. “What can I say? He’s had results in the first two games. He’s in the middle of everything. It’s great to see him swing the bat like this and contribute offensively. I’m very happy, because then he will be very valuable. I’m happy for him. I know how hard he works.”
Case in point: Giancarlo Stanton entered the game in the ninth inning with a bullet home run to left-center field.
Rodon played with fire, but where he could have been burned last season, he somehow escaped relatively unscathed in his 2024 debut.
Although the left-handed pitcher allowed five hits and three walks, he allowed just one run (in the first inning) and instead left seven players on base with timely pitching, including four strikeouts.
He had to ride through four traffic jams (he got a new jersey after three innings), as his sweat-soaked jersey shows, but he lived to tell the tale.
“I’m never going to be mad if our team wins,” Rodon said. “I’m happy to get the win. I know there’s room for improvement throughout the week for my next start. But today I’m going home happy that the Yankees won.”
