A schedule ripped up by the forecast
Rain moved the goalposts in the Bronx. Saturday’s game between the Yankees and Orioles has been pushed forward and bolted onto Friday, turning the day into a doubleheader at Yankee Stadium. Before the first pitch, the club pauses for something else entirely: a plaque ceremony for CC Sabathia in Monument Park.
It is the fifth time since the All-Star break that New York has been forced into a twin bill at home, a quiet reminder of how messy a 162-game calendar gets once the weather stops cooperating. The Yankees arrive in decent shape for it. They have won 11 of their last 16 games and are gearing up for October, while Baltimore is playing out the string after being eliminated from the playoff race on Thursday.
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Lombard keeps hitting, Alonso keeps swinging
Rookie shortstop George Lombard Jr. is the reason to watch game one. He delivered the go-ahead homer Thursday against Tampa Bay and has now hit .310 with four home runs and 11 RBIs over his last 10 games, a stretch ace Cam Schlittler singled out this week. “He’s a stud,” Schlittler said. “It’s a lot of pressure on you being a shortstop for the Yankees, so I think he’s handled it very well.”
Baltimore has lost eight of ten meetings with New York this season and was swept in the Bronx back in May, so history is not on its side heading into the twin bill. Pete Alonso is still doing damage regardless of the standings, with nine homers and 19 RBIs across his last 26 games. His mindset for the stretch run is simple. “Whatever we have left in the tank, just empty the tank,” he said, “because after 162, that’s it.”
Two games, two different stakes
Trevor Rogers takes the ball for Baltimore in game one against Brendan Beck, before Brandon Young faces Will Warren, who is expected to start game two for New York. For the Yankees, the doubleheader is about staying sharp before the postseason. For the Orioles, it is about pride and little else, with the season now a formality after Thursday’s elimination.
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