Giancarlo Stanton & Aaron Judge are finally becoming Yankees’ bash brothers
Friday night, for the second straight game, Judge and Stanton homered in the same game to power the Bombers to a 10-4 win over the White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field. The Yankees have won five straight and secured at least a split of this four-game series with the White Sox, meaning that they will be undefeated in 10 series this season. Cole held the White Sox to three...
CHICAGO — Brutal. That’s what it’s like for a starting pitcher to face the Yankees lineup when Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton are on a tear. Friday night, for the second straight game, Judge and Stanton homered in the same game to power the Bombers to a 10-4 win over the White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field.
The Yankees (24-8) have won five straight and secured at least a split of this four-game series with the White Sox, meaning that they will be undefeated in 10 series this season. It was the sixth time this season the Bombers have scored double-digit runs, matching their total for the 2021 season.
Judge, Stanton, Joey Gallo and Josh Donaldson each homered and Gerrit Cole posted his fourth straight quality start in a row.
“It’s brutal. There’s obviously a lot of power. There’s different types of hitters and Judge and Stanton are obviously kind of unicorns,” Cole said of facing a lineup like the Yankees. “But we’re running out different looks and every guy really works the count and doesn’t take a pitch off and so we keep that focus and then just let our talents and our individual strengths shine. It’s really diverse, and really tough to get through.”
Cole held the White Sox to three runs on six hits. He walked one and struck out nine over 6.1 innings. He got 19 swings and misses, eight on his four-seam fastball. Michael King allowed a run in the
Judge hit his major-league-leading 12th home run in the fourth, a solo shot off Vince Velazquez. He has eight homers in his last 13 games and nine homers in his last 15. Of his 35 hits this season, 18 have been homers. He has also hit six doubles.
Stanton hit his 10th homer of the season in the first inning. It was his sixth home run in his last six games. The two-run shot off Velazquez, scoring Aaron Judge, was the eighth of his homers that has given the Yankees a lead or tied a game.
It was the 22nd time since they have been teammates that Judge and Stanton have homered in the same game and when they do you can pretty much call it a night. The Yankees are 21-1 when the two sluggers homer in the same game, but the one loss was against the White Sox. That came in the Field of Dreams game last season in Iowa.
“I do feel like both of them are in a really good place right now,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “I feel like it’s really starting to lock in here these last few days obviously. He had (the day off) with the day game back at home (on Wednesday) and picked right up where he left off the night before. Really good to see. And Judgie, I feel like keeps getting better and better.”
Gallo hit his fourth of the season in the fifth. It was a solo shot off Velazquez and his first home run since May 4 at Toronto. Gallo has a hit in his last three games.
Josh Donaldson hit his second homer in as many nights, his fourth of the season in the top of the ninth, scoring Judge.
Aaron Hicks, who was dropped to the No.9 spot in the lineup for the first time since 2017, doubled in a run in the second. He was 2-for-30 coming into the game. Hicks scored on Donaldson’s double. Jose Trevino scored on DJ LeMahieu’s ground out.
Tim Anderson and Donaldson had to be separated at third base in the bottom of the first inning. The White Sox shortstop was diving back to third base on a pickoff attempt when Donaldson’s tag was hard and pushed him off the bag. After he was ruled safe by third base umpire Chris Guccione, Anderson gave Donaldson a shove as he got to his feet. Guccione quickly got between them, but the benches cleared, bullpens emptied and there were minutes of standing around and staring angrily at each other.
Cole got the Yankees out that first inning, despite some sloppy defense behind him.
Anderson’s line drive deflected off Judge’s glove in right field for a double to lead off the bottom of the inning. With one out, Isiah Kiner-Fale booted Luis Robert’s ground ball and then bobbled it as he tried to pick it up and what should have been a double-play turned into a bases-loaded situation for Cole. He struck out Gavin Sheets and AJ Pollock to end the inning.
The Yankees righthander wasn’t able to bail Kiner-Falefa out in the sixth. The shortstop sailed a throw to first high allowing Robert to reach leading off the inning. Kiner-Falefa was not given an error on the play, but the next batter, Sheets, made it a costly mistake when he homered.
That cut the Yankees lead to 7-3.
The White Sox scored their other run when Cole balked with Robert on third base in the fourth inning.
Kiner-Falefa had been a steady presence at shortstop, but in his last three games he’s been charged with three errors and could have had four for the throw in the fourth.
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