NEW YORK – Josh Donaldson took one long look before letting his Yankee teammates chase him down the first base line.
Donaldson may not have gotten a hit, but the Yankees still got the sweep.
The Yankees’ third baseman came through with a game-winning, sacrifice fly in the bottom of the 10th to complete a wild 5-4 win on Sunday over the Detroit Tigers. Donaldson sent a 97 mph fastball to the warning track to bring in ghost runner Aaron Judge and finish off the team’s sixth straight victory.
These moments have become all too common for the Yankees, who’ve now walked off six times this year.
And by moving to 24 games over .500, the Yanks (39-15) have reached a new high watermark for the 2022 season.
“The more we dominate here, the more the city is going to buzz and the fanbase is going to buzz,” first baseman Anthony Rizzo said. “The lights shine brighter when the fans are in it. It’s definitely intimidating on the other side.”
Rizzo scored the tying run in the eighth with the help of two errors: one on a dropped throw on his stolen base attempt and one on an errant throw during his play at the plate.
From there, Wandy Peralta and Michael King held the fort with a 1-2-3 inning in the ninth and 10th, respectively.
The winning swing came in only the third game back for Donaldson after back-to-back trips to the IL (COVID protocol and right shoulder inflammation). Donaldson doesn’t usually choke up, but broke tradition against the hard-throwing Gregory Soto.
“Great grind-it-out at-bat by JD to win it,” manager Aaron Boone said. “Just a lot of guys with a hand in the victory again.”
Easy like Sunday morning
The final game of the Yankees’ homestand started at 11:40 a.m. with the game broadcast on Peacock.
Boone had no complaints about his team’s energy level, although the reviews across the Yankee clubhouse were mixed.
“It’s tough,” outfielder Joey Gallo said. “I don’t think I’ve played an 11:30 game since high school.”
“I set the alarm clock a lot earlier. I tried to get to bed a lot earlier. I tried to get here as early as I could and get in the cage.”
The early work was rewarded in the fifth inning when Gallo crushed a towering, two-run shot to tie the score. It was his first home run in 12 games and snapped a 5-for-25 drought.
While Gallo admitted that a .176 average is hardly what he envisioned, he hasn’t forgotten that it’s a long season.
“I feel like I haven’t helped the team much at the plate lately,” Gallo said. “So that felt good coming in the dugout and feeling like I contributed.”
Pitch perfect
Left-hander Jordan Montgomery carried the baton from the Yankees’ league-leading staff by scattering two runs on five hits over 6 1/3 innings. He struck out five Tigers on 90 pitches before getting pulled for Clarke Schmidt.
Somehow, Montgomery finds himself with the highest ERA in the rotation (3.02) despite allowing three runs or fewer in all 11 starts this year.
“It’s fun,” Montgomery said. “Everybody is going out there and throwing strikes and competing and keeping us in the game. We’re just trying to keep building off each other.”
Yankee pitchers had thrown 22 1/3 straight scoreless innings until Javier Baez’s RBI double in the fourth.
This was also the 10th straight game where the Yankees starter went at least six innings.
“Our pitching really set the tone early for the series,” Donaldson said. “We didn’t give them much at all to do.”
Boone credited Montgomery for maintaining a presence on the inner half against right-handed batters. The Yankees’ southpaw has limited righties to a .232 average this year (entering Sunday) – easily the best of his career.
“I like where he’s at,” Boone said. “I think he’s done a really good job. He’s starting to incorporate the cut fastball back into his repertoire.”
Progress for Zack Britton
Zack Britton is still a while away from facing live batters, but took one step closer to a pinstriped return on Friday by throwing his first bullpen session.
The Yankees’ left-hander went for Tommy John surgery in early September, and pitchers are usually given a timeline of 12 to 18 months.
Boone noted that the two-time, All-Star has been “encouraged at every step of the way” during his rehab from UCL reconstruction and repair.
“I think he’s expecting to pitch this year and I think that’s certainly a possibility,” Boone said before the game Sunday.
“I know it’s going really well. I talk to Britt yesterday the day after his first bullpen and he was encouraged again, like he’s been for most of the rehab.”
Meanwhile, reliever Jonathan Loiasiga (right shoulder inflammation) will start throwing again on Monday.
Sean Farrell is a high school sports reporter for NorthJersey.com. For full access to live scores, breaking news and analysis from our Varsity Aces team, subscribe today. To get breaking news directly to your inbox, sign up for our newsletter and download our app.
Email: farrells@northjersey.com
Twitter: @seanfarrell92
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: NY Yankees completes sweep with walk-off over Detroit Tigers
