Wells, Wells, Wells: the Yankees beat the Royals again

The New York Yankees and Kansas City Royals played a game of baseball tonight. On a day that was a near sellout due to the big league debut of one Jac Caglianone, Yankees fans showed up en masse—especially on the third base side in the lower bowl. They were loud, and they were happy. Royals fans were less loud and less happy, as the Yankees totally shredded Kansas City to the tune of a 10-2 beatdown, with five runs coming off the bat of a red-hot Austin Wells.

Coming into tonight, Max Fried had been on a huge heater, tossing a 1.65 ERA over his last 76.1 innings. Noah Cameron, meanwhile, came in with an ERA under 1.00. But with such a huge difference between Noah Cameron’s FIP (3.64) and ERA (0.85), it implied that some nasty regression was coming.

Indeed, it did. In the top of the first. Noah Cameron walked Trent Grisham on four pitches. Aaron Judge stepped to the plate and I think just about everyone in the building knew what would happen if Cameron fell behind in the count. Sure enough, Cameron threw two straight balls, and it was as good as over. Cameron threw a 94 MPH fastball that Judge crushed. Obliterated. Defenestrated. Left fielder Mark Canha did not move a muscle. The sound was a clear, pure ring of lumber meeting leather. I know that it gave the Yankees a 2-0 lead, but sometimes you simply have to marvel one of the best hitters of all time do his thing.

For a split second, it seemed like the Royals were going to make this a game. They scored their first run in the bottom of the second inning on two farts and a ray of hope, but score it nevertheless they did. Vinnie Pasquantino had a sort of swinging bunt single, beating out a Jazz Chisholm throw. Salvador Perez popup to shallow center field that dropped into the middle of three Yankees. Mark Canha hit a fielder’s choice to putrunners at the corner with one out and Jac Caglianone to the plate. Cags’ broken bat RBI groundout cut the lead in half!

That fraction would very rapidly diminish. The Yankees achieved the killing blow in the fourth inning, as Jasson Dominguez hit a popup single into the classic “Lo Cain triangle” between first base, second base, and right field. DJ LeMahieu hit a clean single up the middle. Then, catcher Austin Wells worked a 10-pitch at bat and finally smashed a three-run home run to make it 5-1 Yankees.

Then, the top of the sixth happened and all hell broke loose. Jazz Chisholm Jr. doubled, forcing Noah Cameron out of the game. Taylor Clarke came in to relieve, and Chisolm stole third base (bonking his head in the process). LeMahieu then walked, and Wells worked a nine-pitch at bat and then doubled both of them home.

By that point, the Royals were behind 7-1 and the whole stadium (sans the Yankees fans) were in a state of shell shock. Somehow, the Yankees scored another three runs afterwards, which put the score at 10-1. Jonathan India hit a home run to make it 10-2, but by that point it was way too little, too late.

This was the sort of game where the Royals were simply overmatched by the better team. It happens. It sucks that it happens when so many fans came out, but the Royals have done that a hell of a lot lately: in the last two seasons, including playoffs, the Royals have played 14 games in front of 30,00 or more fans at Kauffman Stadium. They’ve won four of them. It is, sadly, par for the course.

Good things, uh. Tyler Tolbert got his first big league hit. Jac Caglianone moved to first base and recorded his first putout. That’s about it.

See y’all tomorrow!