Yankees: Aaron Hicks and Didi Gregorius bail out the bullpen in game of the year

If it weren’t for Aaron Hicks and Didi Gregorius, the Yankees would have lost Tuesday’s “Game of the Year” against the Minnesota Twins. The ten-inning instant classic brought out the best in both players, and it showcased the ferocious tenacity of the 2019 Bronx Bombers and a chink in their bullpen armor.

The game could have gone either way for the Yankees and Twins. We knew both offenses were explosive, but who could have predicted this? A combined 35 hits, 26 runs, five lead changes, six home runs, blown up bullpens, and an attendance of over 32,470 that consisted of many broken Minnesotan hearts.

Dear Twins fans, you can send your hate mail to Didi Gregorius and Aaron Hicks. Sir Didi went a perfect five for five with seven runs batted in, and A-A-Ron saved the game for the Yanks twice with his bat and his glove.

In the bottom of the tenth with two outs, the former Minnesota Twin and current New York Yankee, Aaron Hicks, laid out to make a superhuman catch of the year to save a victory for the Yanks. His heroics in the inning prior wasn’t enough to put the Twins away.

With two outs in the top of the ninth inning, Mike Tauchman fought hard to work a walk against Twins left-handed reliever Taylor Rogers. The closer entered the game with a 1.93 ERA and did quick work out of Gleyber Torres and Gio Urshela before issuing the free base.

Coming to the plate was a focused Aaron Hicks, who is known for having more pop against left-handed pitching. He went on to clobber a first pitch go-ahead two-run go-ahead home run to put the Yanks back on top.

And then the Yankees bullpen lost control

Unfortunately, Aroldis Chapman could not find the strike zone in the bottom of the ninth. After walking the bases loaded with zero outs, I came to terms that we were witnessing another Cuban Missle Crisis. However, after getting Twins All-Star shortstop Jorge Polanco to produce a sacrifice fly that tied the game, he went on to escape the ninth inning.

Tuesday’s epic game was not a good outing for the Yankees three most expensive relievers. Closer Aroldis Chapman and set-up men Zack Britton, and Adam Ottavino caused Yankees fans to sweat more than Chapman does on one of his good outings. The three elite relievers blew two saves in their three innings of work.

Britton blew the save in the eighth inning after allowing a go-ahead moonshot hit by Miguel Sano, who hit a home run earlier in the game against starter Domingo German. Chapman, who blew the save in the ninth, and Ottavino who earned the hold in the tenth, each surrendered three walks but didn’t allow any hits.

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Didi Gregorius earned his fifth hit of the game and would eventually score the go-ahead run for the Yankees after Austin Romine and Gleyber Torres each hit singles. Romine would score the Yankees 14th run on a wild pitch. Now with a two-run lead to protect, could Adam Ottavino reduce our blood pressure by getting a quick one-two-three inning as we approached the five-hour mark of playtime? Nope!

Number Zero for the Yanks lost command of the strike zone at the worst possible moment. Although he did get two outs, Ottavino walked the bases loaded and allowed the go-ahead run to reach base with a 14-12 lead.

Yankees relievers David Hale and Tommy Kahnle entered the game earlier to make up for German’s awful start. So, Yankees manager Aaron Boone was running thin on available bullpen arms. He had to turn to 4.68 ERA reliever Chad Green to face the dangerous Max Kepler with the bases loaded.

As expected, Green surrendered a zinger deep to left-centerfield, but that’s when Hicks became an Avenger in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. No, not really, but Hicks was the hero in this one, nonetheless. And to have this heroic outing against the team that drafted and traded him away must have made his postgame celebratory Gatorade shower much sweeter.