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The New York Yankees edged out the Cincinnati Reds 7-6 on Wednesday night in another nail-biting contest. The game was a rollercoaster ride from start to finish. Fans on both sides experienced the ups and downs involved with being a loyal baseball follower.
Michael King earned his sixth win of the season in a game where the Yankees used seven different pitchers. The Reds' offense has looked revitalized in the last month, and their hitters continued their good form early in the game.
Kyle Farmer, Mike Moustakas and Stuart Fairchild hit back-to-back-to-back home runs off Luis Severino in the second inning to give Cincinnati a 4-0 lead. New York fought back with a five-run third inning, only for their opponents to retake the lead in the fifth inning.
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With just six outs remaining, Giancarlo Stanton stepped up and drove a fastball opposite field to tie the game at 6-6.
The Cincinnati Reds self-destructed in the ninth inning and, in the most bizarre fashion, pitched two wild pitches to end the game.
The New York Yankees boast a league-best 62-26 record
For New York Yankees fans, who have arguably the highest expectations of any fanbase, the win to end their losing streak was more relief than joy.
DJ LeMahieu and Giancarlo Stanton received most of the plaudits. Birthday boy LeMahieu went 2-4 while scoring two runs, including the all-important winning run in the tenth.
Stanton's only real contribution was a home run to tie the game in the eighth inning, but it came at a critical stage.
With Aaron Judge, Anthony Rizzo and Josh Donaldson all hitless on the night, the Yankees needed a hero to step up.
Luis Severino didn't look like himself from the start. It was rumored that his shoulder was bothering him before the game, and that was apparent. His fastball was 4-5 mph slower than usual, and he never really looked comfortable on the mound. After his torrid start, it was up to the bullpen to close this one out for New York.
JP Sears steadied the ship and, although he gave up two runs in the sixth, had a solid outing with five strikeouts in 3.2 innings. Albert Abreu, Wandy Peralta, Aroldis Chapman and Clay Holmes all got some work in before Michael King closed it out in the tenth inning.
For the Cincinnati Reds, the loss broke a five-game winning streak. Pitching appears to be a major issue for the Reds.
Their bullpen is one of the worst ranked in the league. Alexis Diaz's dismal display to hand the game to the New York Yankees in the tenth capped off another frustrating evening for the pitching staff.
The Yankees improved to 62-26 and lead the American League East by 14 games over the Tampa Bay Rays.
Let's remember, though, that this was a matchup between one of the most talented teams in the league and a team with the third-worst record in baseball. The Reds are 33-55, 15.5 games behind the division-leading Milwaukee Brewers.
New York Yankees fans should curb their enthusiasm when celebrating a narrow win against a team that is currently last in their division.
