Yankees Highlights: Encarnacion’s grand slam helps Bombers cruise past Rockies

Another night, another cruise to victory. Fresh off an invigorating series win against the rival Rays, the Yankees kept the good times rolling, taking an easy series-opening win over the Rockies on a hot night in the Bronx. Some feared that Monday night’s brutal, ninth-inning collapse against Tampa Bay would force the Yankees into a lull, a rut. Those fears have quickly been dispelled, with the Bombers now having rolled off four in a row. They’ll have the chance to win yet another home set tomorrow afternoon with Masahiro Tanaka on the mound.

Winner(s) of the Game

Plenty of strong performances dotted this game. The best all-around night didn’t belong to Edwin Encarnacion, but he did provide easily the most impactful play of the game, turning a two-run deficit into a two-run advantage with his grand slam in the third:

Elsewhere, Aaron Judge added a two-run blast, and DJ LeMahieu had his fingerprints all the game, reaching base three times, scoring twice, and driving in two. Plus, the bullpen was dynamite behind a serviceable J.A. Happ start, with Adam Ottavino striking out the side in the sixth, and Stephen Tarpley tossing three shutout and striking out six.

Loser of the Game

Only Gio Urshela failed to reach base among the starters. He can be forgiven for the odd off-game, especially coming off a nice hot stretch that saw him hit .355 over the course of ten games.

Honorable mention: No one tonight really merited the moniker “Loser of the Game”, but we will mention that despite only giving up two runs, this was J.A. Happ’s shakiest start in a while. He limited the damage, but did yield 11 baserunners in five innings to an unimpressive Rockies lineup.

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FanGraphs