The New York Yankees had a good start to the 2024 season. They remained unbeaten for the first few games and have lost only one series so far, against the Toronto Blue Jays. However, they have met the Blue Jays this season one more time. In the previous series, it was the Bronx Bombers that came on top. However, the NY side managed to stay at the top of the American League East division for the most part of the ongoing season so far. Nevertheless, the Baltimore Orioles are close second with just one game behind. The team was hoping to dominate against the Oakland Athletics, but that did not really happen.
In fact, it was the Oakland Athletics who got the crucial win in Game 1 of that series in their bank against the New York Yankees. Losing the first game of this series meant that the NY side lost two games in a row. As a result, the Orioles managed to get on top of the AL East for a while. If the Bronx Bombers want to maintain a streak of staying at the top of their division, they must keep winning. Thanks to Anthony Rizzo’s home run, the Yankees managed to even the series against the A’s.
How Anthony Rizzo Saved The Series For The Yankees Against The A’s?
According to MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch, Anthony Rizzo is not a big fan of the month of April. So far in his career, the Yankees slugger has played 261 games in the regular season between March and April. He had .245/.364/.463 slash line playing in these months. But Hoch said when the guy is on a hot streak, the above stats do not really matter. At least, that’s what Rizzo proved in the second game against the A’s on Tuesday. The veteran slugger hit a two-run homer in the first inning to cap a four-run inning for the NY side. Moreover, after losing the first game, the Bronx Bombers started Tuesday’s game with a bang.
After the first inning, though, the offense kind of fell asleep, and that’s when it came down to Marcus Stroman saving the night for his team. Eventually, the NY Yankees won 4-3. It was a crucial victory to save the series for the third game. After winning at the Yankee Stadium on Tuesday, as per Bryan Hoch, Rizzo mentioned that there is nothing to write about homers, but they do come in bunches. Moreover, Anthony Rizzo feels he needs to grind through the moment, and he is very well aware that there’s a lot of baseball still to play.
Aaron Boone Talked About The Value Of Rizzo’s Homer
In the post-game interview, the Yankees manager told MLB.com that sometimes the guys need those sparks to get rolling and get into the flow of the season. That’s how important Rizzo’s 385-foot blast was for the team and the man himself. Moreover, Aaron Boone mentioned that it is about settling in and “Getting a lot more normal.”
As per the Yankees skipper, during the first month, the players are looking to get some traction and the flow of the normal grind of the season. It is more important for guys like Anthony Rizzo, who “Have been there and done that.” The 385-foot home run was Rizzo’s second in the 2024 season. His first one came against the Toronto Blue Jays on April 6.
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