Yankees 9, Red Sox 2: Fried, Bellinger, and a Bronx Sweep

García in the fourth. Bellinger in the sixth. Boston gone again.

September 30, 2026 - New York - Luis García Jr. pointed into the stands after his homer in the fourth. He grew up a Yankees fan before moving to the Dominican Republic, the MLB recap said, and on Wednesday he was the first dent in Sonny Gray. The New York Yankees beat the Boston Red Sox 9-2 at Yankee Stadium, swept the American League Wild Card Series, and sent Boston home for the second straight October.

Cloudy. 68 degrees. Wind 5 mph and varying. First pitch 8:15 p.m. Attendance 49,004. The game lasted 2 hours, 59 minutes. New York wins the series 2-0. The AL Division Series against Tampa Bay starts Saturday at Tropicana Field.

"Being able to celebrate with your teammates after a playoff series win, it doesn't get old," Max Fried said, per MLB.com. "This is what we start practicing in February for."

Gray for 4 2/3. Fried for six. Then the sixth opened.

Fried threw six innings: three hits, one earned run, one walk, six strikeouts, 98 pitches. The earned run was Willson Contreras homering to right-center in the sixth, a call that stood after a review. Boston had gone 26 innings without a postseason run before that ball left the yard, a streak that dated to last year's Wild Card in the Bronx, the MLB recap said. Fried still left with a 2-1 lead that did not stay 2-1 for long.

Gray threw 4 2/3: six hits, two earned, no walks, five strikeouts, 70 pitches. García's homer made it 1-0. Austin Wells and Ben Rice were on when Cody Bellinger singled to right off Erik Miller in the fifth. Wells scored. 2-0. It was the second straight night Miller allowed a run to the first batter he faced. Tuesday it was Rice. Wednesday it was Bellinger, who had already caught the ceremonial first pitch from his father, Clay.

Gray left to boos. The Yankees were not done.

Ten batters. Six runs. An intentional walk that did not work.

The sixth sent 10 hitters to the plate. George Lombard Jr. singled Spencer Jones home for his first postseason RBI. 3-1. Wells lifted a sacrifice fly. Lombard scored. 4-1. Ryan McMahon grounded out, and Jazz Chisholm Jr. scored. 5-1. Boston then walked Rice intentionally to face Bellinger with Garrett Whitlock on the mound. Bellinger hit a changeup into the seats. Trent Grisham and Rice scored with him. 8-1.

"I was very surprised they were willing to face Cody Bellinger, a guy who absolutely thrives with runners in scoring position and has done it his whole career," Rice said, per MLB.com. "Interesting decision."

"That was a cool moment," Bellinger said. "I feel like I was able to enjoy that one. Home game in Yankee Stadium, it's a really fun atmosphere."

Garrett Crochet faced four batters in the middle of that inning and was charged with four earned runs on three hits. Whitlock inherited the rest and allowed the three-run homer. Nick Sogard homered off Will Warren in the seventh. 8-2. Wells singled Chisholm home later in the seventh. 9-2. Aroldis Chapman struck out the side in a scoreless eighth for Boston. David Bednar finished the ninth for New York.

Blinders off. Tampa Bay next.

Aaron Judge is hoping to be activated for the next round, the MLB recap said. He was on the injured list while García supplied the power New York imported him to provide. García went 3-for-5 with the homer. "I only have one word: unbelievable," he said. "You feel the crowd, you feel the fans."

"I think if we keep pitching the way we're pitching, we can be able to dominate the World Series," Cam Schlittler said after watching Fried follow his Game 1 shutout work. Aaron Boone was more careful. He called Boston a scary team, especially with how they pitch, then pointed at Tampa Bay, which won the division by 4 1/2 games and took seven of 13 from New York this year.

"I know we didn't win the division," Judge said, per MLB.com. "We weren't the No. 1 seed, got put in the Wild Card. But we're not trying to make a statement. We're trying to play our game and take care of business."

Chad Tracy had expected closer games. "They swung the bats extremely well. You've got to give them credit. It was frustrating." Boston scored twice after 26 scoreless postseason innings and still left the Bronx in two nights.

AthX Engine after the baseball

AthX Engine (our projection and scoring system) put New York at 19 team fantasy points, first on Wednesday's four-game card. Fried had 20 pitching FP. Bellinger had 9 hitting FP. Contreras had 9 in a loss. Chisholm and García had 7 each. Those numbers are the 9-2, not a second board.

Fantasy points measure the night under platform scoring rules. Share prices also move with traders through dynamic pricing. They are related. They are not the same number.

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*Sources: MLB.com schedule; MLB Gameday wrap; ESPN scoreboard; ESPN box score; AthX Engine scoring applied to verified box stats. Information only; not financial advice.*