Jose De Leon is strong, and so are Dodgers’ offense and fans in 8-2 win over Yankees
Reporting from NEW YORK — The rowdy pocket of Dodgers fans became apparent to Corey Seager in the first inning of Monday’s 8-2 victory. The group chanted his name, along with the rest of the starting lineup, as he took the field. A Dodgers banner spread across a section of the stands near the left-field foul pole, a symbol of a one-night takeover of Yankee Stadium.
“That was pretty cool,†Seager said. “There was a lot of them over there. They traveled really well.â€
After dropping two of three during a drowsy weekend in Miami, the Dodgers jolted back to consciousness in the Bronx. Seager and Chase Utley paced the offense early; Yasiel Puig and Justin Turner hit home runs late. The offense provided plenty of cover for rookie Jose De Leon. Making his second big league start, De Leon completed five innings of two-run baseball.
The Dodgers (81-62) capitalized on mistakes by their youthful hosts. They chased Yankees starter Bryan Mitchell from the game in the third inning. The bullpen provided four scoreless innings. And the sizable contingent of Dodgers fans provided a welcome environment.
“It was as energetic as I’ve seen,†Manager Dave Roberts said. “That energy picked us up a lot. We travel well — but that, I didn’t expect.â€
This city creates an atmosphere like few others. The team bus crawled through traffic from Manhattan. A horde of reporters crowded the clubhouse. As he waited for the game to start, De Leon tried to manage his nerves.
Growing up in Puerto Rico, De Leon played shortstop and wore No. 5, the same position and digit as Nomar Garciaparra. He became a Red Sox fan, following their American League East rivalry with the Yankees from afar.
“I know the ball flies here,†De Leon said.
His teammates handed him a healthy lead, which allowed De Leon to relax. Utley singled to start the game, took second on a hit by Seager, advanced to third on a fly out and scored when Adrian Gonzalez legged out a ground ball to beat a double play.
An inning later, the Dodgers benefited from the Yankees’ inexperience. The Yankees jettisoned a sizable amount of veteran talent at the trade deadline, selling off slugger Carlos Beltran along with relievers Aroldis Chapman and Andrew Miller. In an unlikely twist, the team found life through youth, and entered Monday’s game only two games back in the American League wild-card race.
But the youth movement did not aid New York’s defense Monday. A three-base error by rookie outfielder Aaron Judge opened the door for a three-run rally in the second. After singles by Howie Kendrick and Andrew Toles, Utley smashed a 96-mph fastball into the gap between Judge and center fielder Jacoby Ellsbury. The ball clipped the upper webbing of Judge’s glove and bounced away, as Utley raced to third.
A more charitable scorer would have credited Utley with a hit. The Bronx upholds a higher standard. But the two runs still counted, and so did another created by an RBI single from Seager. “We got to Mitchell early,†Roberts said.
De Leon gave a run back in the bottom of the second. He left a changeup at the waist of Yankees second baseman Starlin Castro, who clobbered it over the fence in left.
But the Dodgers capitalized on another mistake in the third. To set the table for Kendrick, Yasmani Grandal singled and Josh Reddick doubled. Kendrick uncorked a swinging bunt and beat the throw for an RBI single. Kendrick was happy to aid De Leon, one of several rookie pitchers to contribute this season.
“They’ve been big for us,†Kendrick said. “It’s not only the 25-man roster. It’s the 40-man.â€
The offense was not done. With runners at first and third and Joc Pederson at the plate, the Dodgers attempted a delayed double steal. As Kendrick took off for second, Reddick headed home. Gary Sanchez, the rookie catcher, flung the baseball into center field and Reddick scored to give the Dodgers a 6-1 lead.
De Leon struggled with his command in the fifth. He served up a titanic solo home run to Judge on a belt-high, 2-0 fastball. Roberts stuck with him despite a sustained round of hard contact, and De Leon struck out Sanchez to end his evening on a high note.
In his debut, De Leon captured a win at home. On Monday, he earned a victory in a road ballpark that felt something close to home.
“You see it in different ballparks, but in this stadium, even being a former Red Sox player, it’s not like this,†Roberts said. “On a Monday, we might have caught the Yankees fans off guard, a little bit.â€
Twitter: @McCulloughTimes
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