Not everybody agrees Justus Sheffield is the Yankees’ top pitching prospect, but the left-handed pitcher no longer has to think about reaching the big leagues.
With the Yankees holding a nine-run lead after eight innings on Wednesday night against the Red Sox, Sheffield was summoned to get the final three outs.
It took a little longer than he would have liked since he loaded the bases with one out before feeding AL MVP candidate Mookie Betts a game-ending 6-4-3 double play.
“My legs felt like Jell-O, nerves and adrenaline were pumping. Glad I was able to get my first [big-league game] in,’’ said Sheffield, who was promoted from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Tuesday. “I was trying to breathe as much as I could and settle down. Didi [Gregorius] was telling me to slow down. Glad to get the double play and get out of it.’’
Ever since he was the centerpiece of the 2016 trade with the Indians that sent Andrew Miller from the Bronx to Cleveland, Sheffield’s arrival in the big leagues has been anticipated.
Now, he wants to contribute to the Yankees holding off the A’s in the AL wild-card race.
“From the start I said, ‘I am not here to hang around,’ ” said the 21-year-old Sheffield, who went a combined 7-6 with a 2.48 ERA in 25 games (20 starts) for Double-A Trenton and SWB.
There was nothing wrong with Aaron Judge’s fractured right wrist that led Aaron Boone to lifting the DH in the eighth inning of Wednesday night’s 10-1 Yankees win over the Red Sox.
Boone said he hit Greg Bird for Judge because he was trying to get “some guys out of there, trying to steal an inning or two.”
Judge went 1-for-4 and is 1-for-8 in two games. After hitting three good balls Tuesday night, Judge opened Wednesday night’s game with a liner to second baseman Ian Kinsler.
Aaron Hicks didn’t plan on altering anything he was doing at the plate while his batting average plummeted.
Instead the switch-hitting center fielder believed the line drives he was hitting would eventually fall for hits instead of dying in a glove.
“I have to stop lining out,’’ Hicks said before going 2-for-5 and driving in three runs Wednesday night. “I feel in the past 10 games I have lined out more than usual. I have been hitting the ball hard and coming up short.’’
In that 10-game stretch, Hicks mentioned he had hit .139 (5-for-36), posted a .295 on-base percentage and a .434 OPS. He hit one homer and drove in a run. Hicks’ average went from .252 to .243 during that 10-game slide.
Miguel Andujar and Gleyber Torres have put themselves into the AL Rookie of the Year conversation with their bats while their defense has been a work in progress and something the Yankees are willing to live with.
Twelve of Torres’ team-high 17 errors have been made at second base, where he has played in 95 games. That tied him for fourth among major league second basemen. Five of the miscues came at short, where Torres played 15 games filling in for Didi Gregorius.
Andujar started Wednesday night’s action with 15 errors, which was fourth among all third basemen.
“Obviously they are really young players and really important players for us,’’ Aaron Boone said of the 23-year-old Andujar and Torres, 21. “We are constantly working and developing and teaching and trying to help grow and addressing certain things.’’
Boone admits the Yankees have come to understand the rookie’s errors.
“Mistakes are part of it and we have had to live with some of those,’’ Boone said. “But for the massive production we have got from those guys and how important they have been to the success of the club is undeniable. The bottom line is we always chalk things up to youth. Everyone is going to make mistakes in certain parts of games. We believe in those two guys. If we are going to win big this year and into the future, they are going to be right in the middle of it.’’
Andujar went 2-for-4 with a homer in Wednesday night’s game. He is hitting .298 with 25 homers and 83 RBIs. Torres is hitting .280 with 23 homers and 71 RBIs after going 1-for-4.
The Yankees hit three homers Wednesday night and tied the franchise’s single-season home run record of 245, which was set in 2012. The Yankees are on pace to hit 263, which is one shy of the MLB record 264, set by the 1997 Mariners.
With 496 appearances as a Yankee, David Robertson started Tuesday night’s action fourth among franchise pitchers. He was two back of Whitey Ford, who is third at 498.
Before and during the Red Sox-Yankees game at Yankee Stadium on Thursday, the Yankees will join New York-Presbyterian and Ed Randall’s Fans for the Cure by offering free screening during Prostate Cancer Awareness Month.
Ticketed fans, game-day employees and media members over 40 will be welcomed at the area near Main Level 220. Medical personnel will be administering PSA blood tests to all who request one. Across from the area fans have the option to take a digital rectal exam.
The first 300 men over 40 who respond will receive a voucher good for two complimentary tickets to select Yankees games during the 2019 season based on availability.
