The New York Yankees on Wednesday were poised to extend their recent misery on a long night against the Tampa Bay Rays, but one swing from Josh Donaldson changed everything when he hit a walk-off grand slam in the 10th inning as the clock struck midnight to salvage an 8-7 win and avoid a three-game sweep.
Gleyber Torres singled leading off the 10th off Jalen Beeks (2-2) and Anthony Rizzo walked before Donaldson lifted a one-strike fastball to the short porch in right field. He flipped his bat and raised his arms immediately after he connected.
“The guys were pumped,” Donaldson said. “I think just how the game progressed and how the back-and-forth battle happened there, and we were able to kind of come back there with our backs against the wall. I definitely think there was some release of some joy and some frustration over the past couple of weeks for sure.”
Photo: Brad Penner-USA TODAY
Oswaldo Cabrera, recalled from the minors earlier on Wednesday, was in the on-deck circle, and Donaldson gave the 23-year-old third baseman a chest bump as part of his celebration.
It was Donaldson’s eighth career game-ending homer and first since Sept. 27, 2015, with the Toronto Blue Jays also to beat Tampa Bay.
“I felt like off the bat right away” it was gone, New York manager Aaron Boone said. “Right away I felt like it was a homer, but I needed to see it go over.”
Photo: Brad Penner-USA TODAY
Data from the Elias Sports Bureau showed that Donaldson became the third Yankee — joining Babe Ruth and Jason Giambi — to hit a game-ending grand slam with New York trailing by at least three runs in extra innings.
“There’s not too many better feelings in the world than hitting a walk-off home run,” Donaldson said.
Aroldis Chapman (2-3) gave up three runs in the top of the 10th for New York, who entered having lost three straight and 12 of 15.
However, the Yankees finally got some help from their offense, scoring more than three runs in a game for the first time since Aug. 8. New York had totaled one run in their previous three games.
The Rays led 4-2 when the game was stopped by rain with one out in the top of the seventh. The ensuing 1 hour, 3 minute delay was worth it for the Yankees, who ended Tampa Bay’s four-game winning streak.
Although the Yankees are 9-16 since the All-Star break, their American League East lead moved back to 10 games over Tampa Bay and Toronto. New York have led the division by double digits for all but two days since June 13.
“For being the regular season and being August, that was a special one,” Boone said.
In other games, it was:
‧ Angels 7, Mariners 11
‧ Blue Jays 6, Orioles 1
‧ Braves 7, Mets 9
‧ Brewers 1, Dodgers 2
‧ Cardinals 5, Rockies 1
‧ Giants 2, Diamondbacks 3
‧ Guardians 8, Tigers 4
‧ Marlins 3, Padres 10
‧ Nationals 2, Cubs 3
‧ Pirates 3, Red Sox 8
‧ Rangers 2, Athletics 7
‧ Reds 1, Phillies 0
‧ Twins 4, Royals 0
‧ White Sox 2, Astros 3
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