The Boston Red Sox opened the American League Wild Card Series with a 9-0 loss to the New York Yankees on Tuesday night, leaving their season one defeat from ending after a night that never got off the ground at Yankee Stadium.
Boston managed three hits and one walk. The lineup struck out 11 times and never scored. Shortstop Trevor Story supplied one of the few bright spots, going 1-for-3 with a double, then tried to keep the clubhouse from sinking after the shutout.
“There’s no time to sit around and feel sorry for ourselves or anything like that,” Story said. “We’ve got to keep these spirits up and come back tomorrow. That’s why it’s a series. I think we learned that last year.”
That lesson is now urgent. The series is best-of-three, and every game is in the Bronx. A loss Wednesday would send Boston home. Story did not dress it up when asked about the win-or-go-home spot.
“You said it. Our backs are against the wall,” Story said. “It’s time to win… we either continue playing or we don’t. I feel good about our chances.”
Payton Tolle gave the Red Sox a chance early. The left-hander worked 4 2/3 innings and allowed one run on five hits, with four strikeouts and one walk. The bullpen could not hold the line after he left.
Austin Wells singled home a run in the second for a 1-0 Yankees lead. Ben Rice, a Cohasset, Massachusetts, product, made it 2-0 with a solo homer in the fifth off Erik Miller. Rice later singled home another run in the seventh, and Luis Garcia Jr.’s double-play grounder brought in a fourth run.
The eighth inning ended any hope of a late push. Wells hit a sacrifice fly, then Rice crushed a grand slam. Rice finished 4-for-5 with two homers and six RBIs. Cam Schlittler, from Walpole, Massachusetts, did the rest on the mound, throwing 6 1/3 scoreless innings with 10 strikeouts on 117 pitches.
Roman Anthony left in the sixth with right hand pain, thinning an already quiet Boston order. Story’s double was the Red Sox’s only extra-base hit.
Boston finished the regular season 87-75 and earned a Wild Card berth. New York went 93-68. Both sit behind the Tampa Bay Rays, who won the AL East at 98-64. The winner of this series faces Tampa Bay in the Division Series.
Last October, the Yankees also beat the Red Sox in the Wild Card round. Story pointed back to that experience as the reason Boston cannot linger on Tuesday’s result.
Story, 33, played 64 regular-season games this year after missing time with injuries. He hit .235 with five home runs and 29 RBIs. He was one of the few Red Sox hitters who put a ball in play with authority Tuesday.
Game 2 is set for 8 p.m. ET Wednesday at Yankee Stadium. If Boston wins, a deciding Game 3 would follow Thursday in the same park.
