Thursday night time didn’t precisely draw parallels to the Yankees’ collapse within the 2004 ALCS, but the pinstripers did extract some odds-defying revenge over the Pink Sox with their decisive 4-0 victory in Sport 3 of the American League Wild Card Collection.
A best-of-three set, the internet hosting Yankees didn’t need to conjure the identical magic Boston did 21 years in the past when it turned the one main league membership to beat a 3-0 sequence deficit within the playoffs. However with Bucky Dent throwing out the ceremonial first pitch on the forty seventh anniversary of his well-known residence run at Fenway Park, maybe there was some voodoo working within the Yankees’ favor Thursday, as they turned the primary crew to advance previous the Wild Card spherical after shedding Sport 1 since MLB formally expanded its playoff format to incorporate 12 groups in 2022.
“I guess you guys didn’t believe us, but [we have] a lot of belief in each other. We know what type of team we have,” Aaron Choose mentioned after going 4-for-11 within the sequence. “There’s a lot of belief in each other.”
“We knew we had the chance to come back and win the series,” Austin Wells added. “I think it’s just resilience of the team and not giving up.”
The Yankees completed the feat — and prevented early elimination — hours after the Guardians and Padres, losers of Sport 1, got here up quick towards the Tigers and Cubs, respectively, in their very own do-or-die video games. With small-sample historical past made — thanks largely to rookie right-hander Cam Schlittler, who had a postseason debut for the ages, and a four-run fourth — the Bombers threw themselves a boozy bash within the Bronx.
“I woke up, and I was locked in,” Schlittler, soaked in champagne, mentioned after the Boston space native threw eight scoreless innings with 12 strikeouts, probably the most ever by a Yankees rookie in a playoff sport. “I knew exactly what I needed to do out there, especially against my hometown team. As I told Andy [Pettitte] yesterday, I wasn’t going to let them beat me. I was just overconfident in that fact.”
One other alternative for revenge now awaits, because the Yankees will head north of the Canadian border for an ALDS showdown with the well-rested Blue Jays.
It was Toronto that got here in first place within the AL East, taking maintain of the division in early July because the Yankees stumbled by their annual summer time swoon. Even with months of poor play, the division race got here all the way down to the ultimate day of the common season, as each groups went 94-68 this yr.
However with the Jays proudly owning the tiebreaker because of an 8-5 document in head-to-head play, the Yankees missed out on a coveted bye regardless of outpacing the Jays on the plate and within the rotation.
The Yankees’ slugging offense ranked first by way of runs scored and wRC+, whereas Toronto, pesky and vulnerable to placing the ball in play, completed fourth in each classes. Yankees starters additionally ranked fourth in rotation ERA whereas their Jays counterparts completed twentieth, although Toronto had the superior bullpen as New York’s aid corps stumbled all through the season.
“They’re a complete team,” Choose mentioned. “They don’t strike out a lot, so they’re going to put the ball in play and force your hand on defense. But we’re looking forward to it.”
The Rogers Centre, specifically, was a home of horrors for the Yankees this yr, as they misplaced 6-out-of-7 video games there over two sequence in late June and July. The Yankees had been taking part in a few of their worst baseball at that time within the season, although, they usually took 2-out-of-3 from Toronto at Yankee Stadium in early September.
That sequence coincided with an end-of-season surge that made the Yankees one among baseball’s hottest groups heading into the postseason. They had been capable of experience that wave — and lean on a few of the adversity they confronted over the summer time — within the Wild Card sequence, getting back from a Sport 1 defeat that had people questioning a number of of Aaron Boone’s choices.
In a position to rebound in Video games 2 and three — Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Ben Rice starred within the center contest — the Yankees managed to outlive and advance, preserving their marketing campaign and their championship hopes alive.
They’re nonetheless a number of wins away from capturing their first title since 2009, however that dream lives on just some days after their season seemed to be in jeopardy.
“Toronto is going to be rocking,” Choose mentioned because the Yankees’ celebration winded down. “We love that, and the Bronx is rocking, so it’s gonna be fun.”
Initially Revealed: October 2, 2025 at 10:54 PM EDT
