The offense was alive and kicking Sunday for the Yankees, recording 12 hits in a 10-7 win over the San Diego Padres.
Aaron Boone’s club will now travel to Seattle for a three-game set after winning a series against the Padres.
Ace Gerrit Cole was on the mound for the Bronx Bombers and started the day by giving up a home run to Jake Cronenworth in the first inning. Cole also allowed a two-run blast to ex-Yankee Rougned Odor in the seventh. It would have been Odor’s second home run of the game, but Aaron Judge robbed the former Yankee in right field in the second inning.
The homers marked Cole’s second straight start allowing two homers and his eighth homer allowed in the last five appearances.
Judge responded right away late in the first with his 15th homer of the season against Padres starter Yu Darvish. It started a tough day for the right-hander, who entered the game with a career 3.67 ERA and 1.64 ERA in six appearances against the Yankees.
Darvish’s day ended after allowing seven hits, seven earned runs and just two batters on strike in 2.2 innings of work. His ERA now sits at 4.61
The Yankees blew the game up in the third, batting down the order and scoring seven runs overall with eight hits in the frame. While trailing 3-1, Anthony Volpe’s RBI single scored Kyle Higashioka. Anthony Rizzo and Judge followed with RBI singles to take a 4-3 lead.
The Padres couldn’t get out of the frame first until outfielder Trent Grisham stole a three-run homer from DJ LeMahieu. Defender pick Harrison Bader added another run and Willie Calhoun knocked Darvish out of the game after an RBI brace.
A few RBI hits from Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Higashioka made it 8-3 and provided a comfortable cushion with Cole on the mound.
But before Yankees fans enjoyed an entertaining low in the third, they had to suffer from an ugly defense in the second.
Padres left fielder Jose Azocar, who was added to the roster late after Juan Soto was scratched with a back tightness, scored a Little League home run. Azocar went for the cross and Bader tried to throw in the fast Ha-Seong Kim at home. Kim scored easily as Bader swung the ball over home plate and Cole failed to support Higashioka.
Higashioka then got the ball back and fired an errant pitch into left field to try and get Azocar at third, which would have easily been called with a decent pitch.
Azocar then scored, much to the delight of the Padres dugout. The outside dugout didn’t have much to cheer about after that, as Cole struck out the next 10 batters. Cole left the game after the Odor homer and was replaced by Jimmy Cordero.
The right-hander allowed four hits, six runs (five earned), three walks and struck out nine in six innings.
Azocar did even more damage after Kim managed to score on a defenseman’s pick in the seventh, cutting the Yankees’ lead to 8-6.
But that wasn’t enough for the unsuccessful Padres (24-29), who continue to disappoint. The team currently sit fourth in the NL West.
In the eighth, Bader’s solo shot and Higashioka’s RBI single gave the Yanks two insurance runs.
Rizzo left Sunday’s game after the sixth inning with an apparent injury after colliding with Fernando Tatis Jr. on a takedown attempt. It was unclear where Rizzo was injured, but he threw down his glove as he fell in pain.
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