Alex Verdugo delivers as Yankees welcome postseason baseball back to Bronx with win over Royals

After waiting 713 days for playoff shot to instrumentality to the Bronx, a restless assemblage filled the seats wrong Yankee Stadium connected Saturday night.

Long earlier Gerrit Cole threw the archetypal transportation of the ALDS, Yankees fans booed the visiting Royals, roared for Juan Soto’s pinstriped postseason debut, and thunderously declared Aaron Judge “MVP.” With the gathering buzzing anterior to the action, Kansas City recovered itself successful hostile territory.

The stars did not present the important blow, though, arsenic Alex Verdugo’s seventh-inning, opposite-field azygous scored Jazz Chisholm Jr. and gave the Yankees the go-ahead tally successful a 6-5 win. Earlier successful the day, Aaron Boone said it was a “fairly” casual telephone to commencement the embattled hitter successful near tract implicit Jasson Domínguez, a lively statement surrounding the Yankees for weeks fixed some players’ shortcomings.

ALEX VERDUGO SINGLE FOR THE LEAD!!! pic.twitter.com/3NdJPyJq57

— Talkin' Yanks (@TalkinYanks) October 6, 2024

With Verdugo tested successful the playoffs and a superior defender, Boone went with the veteran. But those weren’t the lone reasons Verdugo got the nod.

“As good arsenic he’s played successful left, conscionable felt similar it was the close happening to do,” Boone said, “and I inactive consciousness similar he’s got a bully tally of discourtesy successful him too.”

The remark proved prophetic, arsenic Verdugo went 2-for-3 with a locomotion and 2 runs scored. He besides stopped the Royals from tacking connected to a two-run framework erstwhile helium made a sliding drawback adjacent the near tract foul enactment successful the 4th inning.

Gerrit Cole, who allowed a two-run homer to MJ Melendez earlier successful the inning, benefitted from that web gem. The ace allowed 3 earned runs implicit 5 innings of work.

Cole hardly looked his best, allowing 11 hard-hit balls portion walking 2 and striking retired three.

Back connected offense, Gleyber Torres made up for moving into a first-inning retired astatine the sheet erstwhile helium lofted a two-run homer disconnected Michael Wacha successful the 3rd inning. That enactment the Yankees up 1 aft Tommy Pham got the Royals connected the committee with a second-inning sac fly.

The Yankees tied the crippled and took the pb successful the bottommost of the 5th erstwhile Austin Wells and Anthony Volpe worked walks with the bases loaded.

Volpe past acceptable Kansas City’s Garrett Hampson up for a two-run, go-ahead azygous erstwhile the shortstop made a throwing mistake successful the sixth inning. However, Wells tied the crippled astatine 5 with a azygous successful the bottommost of the inning.

Verdugo, often a people for Yankees fans this season, past gave the Bombers the pb for bully earlier Luke Weaver notched a four-out save.

While the Yankees stranded 11 runners — Giancarlo Stanton’s deficiency of velocity burned them doubly — and went 2-for-13 with runners successful scoring position, the lineup did conscionable capable to commencement the 2024 postseason with a win.

Now the Yankees volition look to instrumentality a 2-0 bid pb with Carlos Rodón connected the mound for Game 2 connected Monday. He struck retired 9 Royals portion permitting 4 runs (2 earned) implicit six innings connected Sept. 9.

Cole Ragans is scheduled to commencement for Kansas City. He held the Yankees to 3 hits and 2 earned runs implicit six innings astatine Yankee Stadium connected Sept. 11.