Angels score 7 in ninth to beat Yankees, conclude wild game of unexpected outcomes
Euphoria. It's the only way first baseman Jared Walsh said he can describe his Los Angeles Angels seven-run ninth inning to down the New York Yankees on a night of various weather delays.
Walsh's grand slam off of Aroldis Chapman, who had never given one up, tied the game in the top of the ninth. The Angels went on to win, 11-8, on a rainy night that included more than two hours of weather delays and didn't conclude until 1 a.m. ET.
Despite another loss, Yankees team owner Hal Steinbrenner broke his silence and put his support behind the coaching staff.
Angels persevere in rough Ohtani outing
Shohei Ohtani made his Yankee Stadium debut, but lasted a mere two outs. He gave up seven earned runs on two hits and four walks while striking out one. The seven runs was a career-worst.
The Angels put out a parade of pitchers after that while trailing 7-2 through the first inning. In total, eight took the mound for Los Angeles.
Chapman came into the game for the Yankees with an 8-4 lead. He walked three batters to load the bases on one out when Walsh, who hit a homer in the fifth inning, took the 84 mph slider to right-center, tying it up.
Game changer 😇#WeBelieve | @BudSelect pic.twitter.com/6kUlWxFOVQ
— Los Angeles Angels (@Angels) July 1, 2021
It was Walsh's second career grand slam, and the first Chapman had ever given up. Until Wednesday night he hadn't given up a home run to a lefty since August 2017. He also hadn't walked three batters in a single game since July 2019.
Luis Rengifo hit a two-run single off of Lucas Luetge with two outs to bring the winning run in and Taylor Ward hit an RBI-single to pad the lead a tad. Raisel Iglesias earned his 15th save as the final of seven Angels relievers.
The game was delayed a total of 2:13 after two separate rain delays and it didn't finish until 1:06 a.m. The sides were expected to meet again Thursday at 1 p.m., but that game has been postponed due to rain.
Yankees historical markers for trivia
There was a lot of historical marks for the wild game, which started in 92-degree heat.
It was the first ninth-inning, game-tying grand slam the Yankees franchise had given up since June 1986 when Toronto's George Bell hit one off of Dave Righetti.
It's the third time in baseball's modern era that a team scored seven or more runs in the first inning only to turn around and allow seven or more in the ninth inning, per Elias Sports Bureau. The Boston Braves experienced it in July 1913.
And it's the fourth tie the Yankees franchise scored at least seven runs in the first inning and loss. The last time they were up by four in the ninth and lost was August 2000, again against the Angels.
Steinbrenner backs Cashman, Boone
Yankees owner and managing partner Hal Steinbrenner broke his silence about the team's struggles this season while on a Zoom call Thursday morning. He said it's "aggravating, maddening," but he remains supportive of general manager Brian Cashman, manager Aaron Boone and the coaching staff, NJ.com reported.
“Am I mad at what I see? Absolutely,” Steinbrenner said, via NJ.com. “I’m aggravated, frustrated angry, but that’s not going to push me into a kneejerk decision to get rid of somebody that the players respect, want to play for, want to win for.”
The Yankees (41-39) are 8.5 games back of the AL East-leading Boston Red Sox with the All-Star break approaching. They've lost five of their last six games and are 5.5 games out of a wild-card spot.
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