The New York Yankees look like a true contender in the AL East this season. Their offensive revamp during the offseason seems to have paid off and despite the injuries, the rotation has been getting the job done as Masahiro Tanaka has looked even better than advertised.
This time, the bats carried the team against the Pittsburgh Pirates. The ‘Bronx Bombers’ went deep an incredible five times on their way to a 7-1 win against their NL Central foe.
All the Yankees’ run were scored via the long ball. Mark Teixeira – who’s having an incredible season – kicked things off with a two-run blast in the first and Zoilo Almonte added another one with a solo shot to put New York ahead 3-0 after three complete frames.
The Pirates came back in the top of the sixth with a solo-HR by Starling Marte that made it 3-1, but the reality was that the Pirates were never able to get any sort of consistent offense. As a team, Pittsburgh notched eight hits and was 1-for-9 with RISP.
Pittsburgh’s starter Edinson Volquez couldn’t settle and allowed two other home runs to increase the Yankees’ advantage. The first one came in the sixth – a solo shot by Brett Gardner – and the last one was in the seventh, another solo-HR this time by Alfonso Soriano.
The home-run party was sealed by Brian McCann. The former Atlanta Braves’ catcher connected off reliever Vin Mazzaro and his two-run shot structured the final score.
This loss hurts the Pirates’ chances to make the playoffs this season. Despite the fact that the season has started recently, the team’s play so far hasn’t given the fans much hope for the reminder of the year.