Masataka Yoshida was listed as the Red Sox designated hitter for Saturday’s game against the Yankees, putting him in the lineup for Game 81 and keeping Boston’s best chance at a series clincher in front of it. The move mattered because the Red Sox had already taken the first two games of the four-game set and were one win from ending it early.
Jake Bennett was on the mound for Boston after taking the rotation spot of Brayan Bello, and the left-hander was making his first appearance against the Yankees. He came in off six scoreless innings with nine strikeouts in a no-decision on Monday in Colorado, a line that helped explain why he got the ball again in a game that carried more than ordinary weight.
The matchup also offered a clear test for Yoshida. He was 3-for-10 against Gerrit Cole, while Wilyer Abreu was 1-for-5, Willson Contreras was 0-for-5, Jarren Duran was 3-for-17, Andruw Monasterio was 1-for-3, Ceddanne Rafaela was 0-for-2 and Connor Wong was 2-for-3. Cole entered with a 2-2 record and a 3.62 ERA, though he had just been tagged for season highs of five runs and nine hits in 4 1/3 innings at Detroit.
That is where the wrinkle sits: a headline built around Mickey Gasper over Yoshida does not match the posted lineup, which placed Yoshida at DH. In other words, Yoshida was not being pushed aside by the lineup card; he was in it, and the only real question was how much production Boston would get from him against a pitcher it had already seen on the other side of the ledger.
The bigger picture was still in Boston’s favor. The Red Sox had won the first two games, and the pitching staff had delivered a quality start in nine straight games. The Yankees, meanwhile, were trying to avoid a third straight loss while hitting.211 over their last nine games, and they had been doing it without Aaron Judge. Boston had not won three straight home games since April and was 14-25 at home, which made finishing the series early more than a scheduling note. It was the kind of day when the lineup itself told the story: Yoshida was available, Bennett was trusted, and the Red Sox were trying to turn a strong start to the series into a finished one.
