The Yankees turned the first game of the Subway Series at Citi Field into a 5-2 win on May 15, 2026, riding a three-run third inning and another late home run to beat the Mets in the opener of a rivalry series that still matters in New York. Cam Schlittler struck out nine over 6 2/3 innings, and the Yankees never gave back the lead after scoring three times in the third.
That inning started with back-to-back singles by Ben Rice and Aaron Judge, then Cody Bellinger doubled before Jazz Chisholm Jr. followed with a two-run double that put the Yankees ahead for good. They added another run when Chisholm walked, moved up on a ground out and scored on a Spencer Jones single, making it 4-0 and forcing the Mets to chase the game early.
Clay Holmes, who had been the Mets' best pitcher through the first month and a half of the season, was the one left to absorb the damage from that third-inning rally. He gave up the decisive burst that put the Mets on the back foot, and the rest of the night became a test of whether New York’s other side could find a way back against a Yankees staff that kept missing bats.
The Mets finally broke through in the seventh when Juan Soto sent a solo home run to left-center to end the shutout. Fernando Cruz came in after Schlittler was removed and shut down the inning by retiring A.J. Ewing on a fly ball to right field, preserving the cushion as the Mets tried to build momentum.
Ben Rice took the game out of reach in the ninth, driving a solo home run off Craig Kimbrel before David Bednar finished the inning for the Yankees. Brett Baty added a run with a single in the bottom of the ninth, but by then the result was already settled at 5-2, another clean Yankees win in a series where every inning carries extra weight.
The Mets' bigger problem is that the same flaw that has dogged them kept showing up again: they continue to struggle against velocity. Until that changes, a lineup that can be quieted early will keep asking too much from its pitching, even when Soto and Baty manage to put something on the board. The Yankees left Citi Field with the first game, the better starting performance and the game’s most decisive swing, which is usually enough in a rivalry built on thin margins.
