New York Yankees vs. Boston Red Sox: Jordan Montgomery vs. Eduardo Rodriguez

Well that was an exciting game last night, wasn’t it? Just as it looked like the Yankees offense had once again wasted a strong effort by the pitching staff, Giancarlo Stanton deposited a first-pitch fastball onto the street behind the Monster to power the Yankees to a 5-3 victory. With a series win already secured, the Yankees go for the sweep — and sole position of fist place in the AL Wild Card race.

Jordan Montgomery (6-6, 3.55 ERA, 3.49 FIP) gets the ball for the Yankees. One of the most underrated pitchers in baseball this season, Montgomery has been the model of consistency all season: He has given up 3 runs or fewer in 23 of his 28 starts, including 13 outings in which he allowed only no more than one. Aside from a three-run battle with the Red Sox after returning from the COVID-IL on August 17th and a five-run clanker against the Mets on September 10th, Montgomery has not given up more than one run in a start since the first day after the All-Star Break. Unfortunately, he has been the victim of the Curse of Jacob deGrom, and has suffered from a lack of run support all season.

Opposing him will be Eduardo Rodriguez (11-8, 4.97 ERA, 3.45 FIP). Despite a mediocre stat line, Rodriguez has absolutely loved playing against the Yankees this year, posting a 3.00 ERA in four starts, although as noted in our coverage earlier today, he has not faced the Yankees lineup since they added Anthony Rizzo and Joey Gallo at the deadline. In three of his four starts in September, Rodriguez has allowed two runs or fewer; on the 7th, however, he surrendered six runs and was unable to get out of the fourth inning. The Yankees are certainly hoping that version of Rodriguez shows up tonight.

After missing yesterday’s game with a leg issue, DJ LeMahieu returns to the lineup, leading off and playing third base. Other than that, the Yankees are running out a fairly standard lineup. Unfortunately, that means no Luke Voit, as Brett Gardner will once again man center field.

Let’s Go Yankees!

How to watch

Location: Fenway Park - Boston, MA

First pitch: 7:08 pm ET

TV broadcast: ESPN

Radio broadcast: WFAN 660/101.9 FM, WADO 1280

Online stream: MLB.TV, ESPN+