Yankees Erupt for Six in the Eighth, Bury Boston 9-2
New York turned a one-run deficit into a seven-run blowout, outscoring Boston 9-2 on August 29. The story of the night was a third inning that swung the game — and an eighth inning that slammed it shut.
Nick Sogard gave Boston the early lead with a 351-foot home run to right in the third, a shot that swung New York's win probability from 68% all the way down to 52%. For a moment, it looked like the Red Sox had something. They didn't. The Yankees answered immediately and decisively. Ben Rice singled to right to score Caballero, and a fielding error by Boston's right fielder allowed Grisham to reach third. Luis García Jr. then grounded into a fielder's choice that scored Grisham, and Chisholm Jr. capped the inning with a sacrifice fly to center to score Rice. Just like that, New York had flipped a 1-0 deficit into a 3-1 lead — all in the same inning Sogard had given Boston hope.
The Yankees extended to 4-1 in the sixth when Spencer Jones hit a sacrifice fly to left, scoring García Jr. Boston clawed one back in the eighth on a Contreras triple to right that scored Abreu, making it 4-2 and briefly keeping the game in conversation. That conversation ended fast. Amed Rosario singled to right to score Bellinger and push Chisholm Jr. to second. Then Austin Wells reached on an infield single to shortstop — a nothing play on paper — that scored both Chisholm Jr. and Rosario to make it 7-2. Rice put the finishing touches on it with a single to center that scored Jones and Wells, capping a six-run eighth and a final of 9-2.
On the mound, Max Fried went 3.2 innings, allowing 1 earned run on 3 hits with 4 strikeouts — a serviceable if abbreviated outing. Brayan Bello absorbed the loss for Boston, giving up 4 earned runs on 5 hits in 4.1 innings. The Yankees' bullpen was sharp: Yerry De los Santos threw a clean inning with 2 strikeouts, and Paul Blackburn followed with a hitless frame and 2 more punchouts. García Jr. finished 3-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored, the quietest dominant line of the night. Rice's 3 RBI on 2 hits looks like the defining offensive contribution, but the eighth inning belonged to everyone — five different Yankees drove in or scored runs in that frame alone. Boston's offense, outside of Sogard's homer, never found traction.