The Sports Xchange
Aug 15, 2017
NEW YORK -- Sonny Gray pitched effectively into the seventh inning in his home debut, and the New York Yankees hit a pair of homers off Jacob deGrom and held on for a 5-4 victory over the New York Mets on Tuesday night at Yankee Stadium.
The Yankees won despite Aroldis Chapman wobbling to the finish. The closer allowed a two-run homer by rookie Amed Rosario with one out in the ninth but preserved Gray's first win for the Yankees and notched his 16th save.
Gray (7-7) took a shutout into the seventh before giving up rookie Dominic Smith's first career home run, a two-run shot. He allowed two runs and five hits in six-plus innings before exiting to a nice hand from the crowd.
Gray allowed two earned runs or fewer for the ninth straight start. It is the longest streak in the American League and the second-longest in the majors, one behind a streak by Philadelphia's Aaron Nola.
Jacoby Ellsbury hit a two-run homer in the fourth, and Gary Sanchez hit a solo homer off deGrom in the sixth. Aaron Hicks had an RBI single in the third, and Sanchez lifted a sacrifice fly in the eighth as the Yankees remained 4 1/2 games behind the Boston Red Sox in the American League East.
Before Tuesday, the Yankees did not score when Gray was pitching in his first two starts for them. Prior to Hicks' hit, the Yankees were 0-for-15 with runners in scoring position when Gray was on the mound.
DeGrom (13-6) made his 100th career start. He allowed five runs and nine hits in 7 1/3 innings against the opponent he made his major league debut against on May 15, 2014, at Citi Field.
He showed little effects from getting hit in the triceps Thursday at Philadelphia but allowed five earned runs for the first time since June 6.
After the Yankees took a 3-0 lead through four innings, Sanchez hit a 1-0 changeup into the first row of the left-center bleachers. It was Sanchez's 21st homer and fifth in 11 games.
Sanchez hit a sacrifice fly after Smith ended Gray's night with a two-run homer into the left field seats.
Tommy Kahnle pitched a scoreless seventh, and Dellin Betances struck out Michael Conforto with Yoenis Cespedes on second to end a scoreless eighth before Chapman nearly endured his fifth blown save.
NOTES: The Mets placed LHP Seth Lugo (right shoulder impingement) on the 10-day disabled list before the game. RHP Robert Gsellman (strained left hamstring) was activated from the DL, and he will start Wednesday against the Yankees at Citi Field in place of Lugo. ... Yankees 1B Greg Bird (bruised right ankle) will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Wednesday. ... Mets RHP Noah Syndergaard (strained lat muscle) threw 20 pitches in a bullpen session, marking the first time he threw of a mound since going on the DL. ... Yankees LHP CC Sabathia (right knee inflammation) could be activated from the disabled list this weekend in Boston if his second bullpen session on Wednesday goes well.