The New York Yankees opened the 2024 season yesterday, against the Houston Astros at Minute Maid Park. For a while, it was looking more like an October matchup with the Chicken Fried Cheats. Like all our worries about injuries, anti-clutch hitting, and new players not adjusting well to the team were coming true.
Didn't end up that way, though.
The Yankees took the field with their road uniforms having no white trim around the numbers on the back and the block letters NEW YORK on the front, as was the case until 1972, although they kept the font they've used since 1973.
And with Gerrit Cole out, for what looks like the 1st 2 months of the season, it was Nestor Cortés who was sent out to start by manager Aaron Boone. Nasty Nestor allowed 3 runs in the 1st inning and another in the 2nd, and it looked like we were doomed to 0-1 early.
A funny thing happened on the way to the Astros beating us: As they would say in English soccer, Four-nil, and they fucked it up! Well, they had help. Yankee help. The Yankees loaded the bases on Framber Valdez in the top of the 5th, and Juan came up with his 1st Yankee hit, scoring Jose Trevino for Soto's 1st Yankee RBI. The bases were still loaded, and Valdez hit Anthony Rizzo with a pitch. Clearly, that was not intentional, because it forced in Oswaldo Cabrera. The bases were still loaded, and Valdez walked Anthony Volpe. The Yankees were within 4-3.
Cabrera hit a home run in the 6th, and the game was tied. Aaron Judge led off the top of the 7th with a double. Giancarlo Stanton grounded to 3rd, and Judge was unable to advance. Rizzo singled, but Judge could only get to 3rd. Volpe drew another walk. And Alex Verdugo hit a sacrifice fly to left, bringing Judge home with Verdugo's 1st Yankee RBI. Back in the dugout, Judge congratulated Verdugo, and it seemed like he was as happy for his teammate's RBI sac fly as he would have been had he hit a home run. It was 5-4 Yankees.
Jonathan Loáisiga pitched a scoreless 6th and a scoreless 7th. Ian Hamilton pitched a scoreless 8th. Clay Holmes was called on to finish the game. The Astros weren't going to give up. Mauricio Dubón led off the inning with a single. Up next was that cheating little piece of trash José Altuve, but he hit a liner right at 2nd baseman Gleyber Torres. Yordan Álvarez hit one that 1st baseman Rizzo could only stop, unable to make a throw. Now, the tying run was on 2nd, the winning run on 1st, with only 1 out. Everyone expected the Astros to win it.
Kyle Tucker singled to right. But Soto is now in right field, with Judge having been moved to center. And Soto threw home, and catcher Trevino just got the tag on Dubón, with no time to spare. Home plate umpire James Hoye called him out. Naturally, the Astros called for a replay, which proved that the initial call was correct.
A weak grounder by Alex Bregman to Volpe, who threw to Torres covering 2nd, and it was, as radio announcer John Sterling said, for the 1st time in a game that counted since September 30, 2023...
"Ballgame over! Yankees win! Theeeeeeee Yankees win!"
Yankees 5, Astros 4. WP: Loáisiga (1-0). SV: Holmes (1, but give credit to Soto for a great throw). LP: Ryan Pressly (0-1). Attendance: 42,642. And the time of the game, as TV announcer Michael Kay would say, a very manageable 2 hours and 41 minutes.
"That was a Yankee classic right there," Judge said after the game. "Juan's debut, that was pretty special out of him. Come up, get his first hit, first at-bat, he takes a walk. Then come up there and, biggest moment of the game and just be cool, calm and collected and deliver a strike home."
The baseball season is underway, and the Yankees are undefeated, and in 1st place. That's just the way I like it.
I don't know how long that will last, but if the Yankees end the season in 1st place, I will be shocked. Pleased, but shocked.
The series continues tonight. Carlos Rodón starts against Cristian Javier.