Giancarlo Stanton spent two nights standing in the Yankees dugout with a bat in his hands, ready to be called on as a pinch hitter against the Red Sox. The call never came, and the Yankees did not need it, closing out a sweep of Boston with a 9-2 win Wednesday night in the Bronx to advance in the AL wild-card series.
Stanton had missed more than five months with three separate calf strains before the Yankees put him on their roster for the series specifically to match up as a pinch hitter against Boston’s toughest left-handed pitching. Manager Aaron Boone came close to using him in both games but never pulled the trigger.
In Game 1, Boone considered sending Stanton up to pinch hit for Spencer Jones to lead off the seventh inning against left-handed reliever Alec Gamboa, then decided against it. Jones went on to start a rally on his own.
Wednesday brought a similar moment in the sixth inning, when Boston turned to left-hander Garrett Crochet, who, like Stanton, hadn’t appeared in a game since late April. Boone again stuck with his left-handed hitters already in the lineup, and the move worked: Jones, Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Trent Grisham all contributed to a six-run inning against Crochet.
“Hopefully the threat that he is can play a factor for us in this series,” Boone said before Game 1.
That threat never had to be deployed. Whether Stanton stays on the roster for the division series against the Rays is now an open question, particularly if Aaron Judge recovers in time from his own calf strain. The Yankees carried 16 position players and 10 pitchers for the wild-card round and will likely need to rebalance the roster.
The sweep gives New York the luxury of choosing between Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodón to start Game 1 of the ALDS on Saturday, with Cam Schlittler slated to start Game 2.
“We’ll talk about that,” Boone said. “Obviously, Gerrit’s lined up for that. Carlos is very much in play for that. We have a ton of confidence in both guys. I think they’re both throwing the ball really well. That will be what we do here these next couple of days as we get ready.”
In other roster news, pitcher Clarke Schmidt, who returned from Tommy John surgery to pitch in one game before going back on the injured list last week with right biceps neuritis, has been shut down for the rest of the postseason, Boone said. Meanwhile, Ryan Weathers, recovering from a left forearm flexor strain, threw a bullpen session Wednesday afternoon, keeping him in consideration for the ALDS roster.
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