A Hero One Day and a Bum the Next

"That's baseball: You're a hero one day, and a bum the next." -- Babe Ruth 

The Yankees played the 3rd game of a 4-game weekend series against the Boston Red Sox last night, with the momentum of 2 hard-hitting wins behind them.

Jordan Montgomery was once again a victim of insufficient run support, and you simply can't do that at Fenway Park and expect to win the game. He went 5 2/3rds innings, allowing 2 runs, including a home run by former Yankee prospect Rob Refsnyder, on 5 hits and a walk. He was backed by a leadoff home run in the 5th inning by Aaron Hicks.

In the 6th, the Yankees got a single from Gleyber Torres, an RBI double from Anthony Rizzo, and an RBI single from Josh Donaldson. It was 3-3 after 9 innings. With an "MVP!" chant saluting him from the many Yankee Fans in attendance, Aaron Judge doubled home ghost runner Jose Trevino. Rizzo doubled Judge home. It was 5-3 Yankees.

But Rizzo made a big mistake, and tried to steal 3rd base, and was caught. Then Giancarlo Stanton struck out. He was 0-for-4 with 3 K's on the night.

Having already used Michael King and Clay Holmes, the latter blowing a save for the 1st time all season, and not wanting to risk Aroldis Chapman in thwt ballyard, Aaron Boone sent Wandy Peralta out to pitch the bottom of the 10th. The ghost runner was Jarren Duran. Refsnyder struck again, although his single wasn't long enough to get Duran home. Peralta got Christian Vazquez to fly out, and that didn't get Duran home, either.

Then came a name you would never have expected in a Red Sox uniform. Jeter Downs. Yes, he's a shortstop, 23 years old, born in Colombia but raised in Miami. He singled Duran home. Peralta got the dangerous Xander Bogaerts to hit a grounder to 3rd, which looked like a game-ending double play. But Donaldson dropped it. His only play was to 1st, and the grounder moved Refsnyder to 3rd and Downs to 2nd. And Alex Verdugo singled them home with the tying and winning runs.

Red Sox 6, Yankees 5. WP: Jake Diekman (4-0). No save. LP: Peralta (2-2). The Yankees were 1 out away from taking 3 of the 1st 4 in Fenway. It would have been a good series even without the last game. But Donaldson, the hero the previous 2 nights, was the goat last night.

The Red Sox and their fans celebrated like they just won the World Series.

The win brings them to within 15 games of the Yankees.

The series concludes tonight, on ESPN. Jameson Taillon starts against Nick Pivetta. Let there be heroes for the Yankees, and keep the potential for bumhood to a minimum.