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Players and fans alike were left confused in the ninth inning at American Family Field in Milwaukee when Ty France's high fly ball – that might have been a go-ahead home run – struck the roof and was caught by left fielder Jackson Chourio.

Under the stadium's ground rules, a "batted ball striking roof, roof truss or roof cable over fair territory" is considered in play.

The San Diego Padres challenged the call on the field but the ground rules are explicit and the Milwaukee Brewers caught a massive break from their home ballpark to stay in the lead.

With two outs, Trevor Megill retired the next batter Jackson Merrill to end the game and secure the Brewers' 3-2 win in Game 1 of the National League Division Series. The second game in the best-of-five series is Sunday, Oct. 4 in Milwaukee.

Oh. My. Goodness.

This ball hit by France looked to potentially be a go-ahead home run, but it hit the roof and was caught, and was ruled an out. pic.twitter.com/E6pnoausP7

— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) October 4, 2026

However, according to MLB Statcast – using exit velocity, launch angle and other data – the ball would have been a home run in just one of baseball's 30 ballparks: Houston's Daikin Park.

Talking to Fox after the game, Megill said he didn't previously know the ground rule.

"At first, it was, 'Oh, crap,' and then the home-plate umpire came up and said it was live no matter what," Megill said. "Four years in this stadium, I've never seen that before. Just glad it worked in our favor there."

Said Padres manager Craig Stammen: "We joked today at the umpires meeting about what would happen if the ball in the roof. It's unlikely, but it happens."

It's the second time this year that the Padres were victimized by a roof, as the catwalks at Tropicana Field obstructed a Xander Bogaerts drive in a game against the Tampa Bay Rays.

After review the call stands.

France is out.

Two outs now in the 9th.

Wow. pic.twitter.com/r211Q6SUxm

— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) October 4, 2026

Without relitigating anything from Saturday, Sunday has to be treated as a game of the utmost importance for the Braves, with no pitching restrictions. All of the Braves’ top arms have had two days to rest now and with an off-day Monday, there is no excuse to hold back. Chris Sale or not, Walt Weiss needs to be aggressive with the bullpen and put the Braves in the best position to win this game going home at the margins.

Braves News

The Braves lost Game 1 of their NLDS matchup 5-3, with a late comeback bid falling short.

Walt Weiss was noncommittal about Chris Sale’s status for Sunday.

Many in Braves Country are looking for more urgency from Walt Weiss in his management, after what felt like a bit of a punt pitching strategy on Saturday.

Atlanta released their NLDS roster, including a few more pitchers than in the Wild-Card.

MLB News

Aaron Judge was excluded from the Yankees’ ALDS roster with his nagging calf injury.

The Rays shut out the Yankees and beat them 1-0, behind a brilliant Drew Rasmussen start.

The Cinderella White Sox took Game 1 in Cleveland for their ALDS in the wide-open AL.

Xander Bogaerts has a new approach at the plate and it’s making a difference. But his secret weapon is no longer a secret.

When NBC analyst Clayton Kershaw pointed out the split grip that Bogaerts was using in the NL Wild Card Series, most had not noted the new technique being used by the Padres shortstop.

During the worst offensive season of his career, with the hope of a postseason run on the horizon, Bogaerts took a suggestion from the coaching staff to try something different.

Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune was able to get some details about Bogaerts’ mechanical adjustment. 

In his Padres Notes on Oct. 2, Sanders traces the change to the road series in Colorado during mid-September. The Padres shortstop had repeatedly rolled over on pitches during the season, leading to weak grounders and lots of outs.

The staff suggested using a split grip on his bat. 

The grip change results in keeping the hands separated by 1-2 inches, which gives better bat control while also helping to keep the bat level through the hitting plane. This helps lift the ball rather than pounding it into the ground.

Clayton Kershaw noticed the grip

After pointing out the change, Kershaw explained the effect the split grip has on the action of the bat. It has been clear that the change has improved Bogaerts’ results late in the season. His incremental decline while a Padre has been discussed at length. Any improvement is welcome, especially for the postseason.

2026 futility

Prior to the All-Star break, Bogaerts was hitting .224 with a .648 OPS. His best month before September was the fast start he had in April, hitting .292 with an .854 OPS.

After slumping in May, Bogaerts has struggled throughout the season, with July being a new low when he hit .167 with a .523 OPS. Starting the season in the top five of the order, Bogaerts found himself hitting in the bottom three.

Blazing to the finish

With the mechanical change made in September, Bogaerts had a .315/.425/.479 batting line with a .904 OPS for the month. He was a vital contributor to the surge that landed his team in the postseason for a record-setting third straight season.

Reluctant to share the details

Bogaerts was one of the three Padres available to the media before their first game of the NLDS against the Milwaukee Brewers. 

Along with manager Craig Stammen and starter Robbie Ray, Bogaerts answered questions about the upcoming series.

Except for any questions about his new batting grip.

When questioned about the origin of the new grip pointed out by Kershaw in the second game of the Wild Card Series, Bogaerts responded, “I don’t know,” he said. “It’s working, so let’s keep it going.”

When pressed further about whether it came out of nowhere, Bogaerts replied, “It didn’t come out of nowhere but it’s hopeful it continues, no?”

Known as a superstitious player, Bogaerts was clearly not keen to discuss the new grip. 

The results speak for themselves. 

Shortly after implementing the change, Bogaerts was a single shy of the cycle in Colorado and went on to hit .400/.500/.800 to finish the season.

When Saunders asked hitting coach Stephen Souza Jr. about the change, Souza said, “He started doing it and he started hitting lasers.”

The prior grip used by Bogaerts

The split grip used since mid-September

ST. PETERSBURG, FL − The loudest moments in Tropicana Field in years came in the third inning Saturday night. Jonathan Aranda launched a 417-foot homer and a sellout crowd of 40,542 lost its collective minds.

Drew Rasmussen missed it. He heard it through the bathroom door.

"Unfortunately, I was in the bathroom," the Rays starter said. "It would have been a really cool time to be in the dugout. But, no, I had to take care of my own business."

Rasmussen handled his business and the Rays' Saturday. He held the Yankees hitless for 7⅔ innings, and the Tampa Bay Rays beat the New York Yankees 1-0 in Game 1 of the best-of-five American League Division Series. Aranda's homer was the only run either team scored. Rasmussen made it hold up from the mound, with a save from Bryan Baker.

Rasmussen threw eight scoreless innings and allowed one hit.

The Yankees' lone hit came with two outs in the eighth, when Austin Wells doubled down the right-field line. Wells then ran through his third base coach's stop sign and was thrown out at third.

Only three pitchers or staffs have finished a no-hitter in the postseason. Rasmussen's 7⅔ hitless innings tied Washington's Anibal Sanchez in 2019 for the longest individual bid since Roy Halladay no-hit Cincinnati in 2010. His 10 strikeouts tied a franchise record for the most in a postseason game.

Rasmussen said he never thought about a no-hitter.

"I wasn't worried about it," Rasmussen said. "I was just trying to execute every pitch."

White Sox slugger Munetaka Murakami’s mind was racing after his first postseason home run on Saturday.

His exact thoughts, however, seemed to be a bit too lewd to share publicly.

Following Chicago’s 3-0 ALDS Game 1 victory over the Guardians, Murakami was asked what he felt when he turned and yelled to the White Sox’s dugout after hitting the blast.

“I can’t really explain it in words right now, but it was something a little bit dirty,” Murakami said through an interpreter.

It’s not clear what exactly the Japanese slugger meant by his comments, but they did draw a few chuckles from the press.

Murakami’s two-run homer in the fourth inning helped propel the White Sox to a shutout win over the Guardians as the club looks to reach its first ALCS since winning the World Series in 2005.

“I really wanted the first run at a very important game, so I’m just really happy that I got one,” Murakami said.

Murakami, who is in his first MLB season after playing eight seasons in Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan, has received nothing but praise from both his teammates and his opponents this postseason.

“That dude can swing it, and that’s No. 1,” Chicago catcher Kyle Teel said, according to MLB.com. “No. 2, I say as a guy in the clubhouse, a guy in the locker room, he’s a guy you want around for the culture as well.

“It’s rare you find superstars that also bring that to the table. It’s an honor to play with him.”

Even Guardians catcher Austin Hedges couldn’t hold back when talking about Murakami’s play.

“He’s just a stud,” Hedges said. “He can hit a home run in every pitch in every spot, so you’ve got to keep him off-balance as best as you can.

“Man, he’s fun to watch hit. Just not when he’s playing against us.”

Across 127 games this season — he missed 35 with a hamstring strain — Murakami posted a slash line of .207/.347/.478 with 35 home runs and 77 RBIs, earning an MLB All-Star appearance.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Austin Wells stood at his locker in the visitors’ clubhouse at Tropicana Field, still in the uniform he stained while trying to avoid the inevitable at third base Saturday evening. He waited there until the cameras came, ready to atone for the decision that ended the Yankees' only scoring chance in Game 1 of the ALDS against the Rays – but this was not to be an exercise in self-flagellation.

Wells, whose double with two outs in the eighth inning broke up Rays’ starter Drew Rasmussen’s no-hitter, said he was “trying to make something happen” when he took off for third and was thrown out by a damning margin. Given many chances to say he made a mistake, Wells never did.

“In the moment, I was being aggressive,” Wells said. “Like I said, we didn’t really have much going on there in the game. So every 90 feet matters.”

Certainly, if Wells were on second, Boone could have pinch-hit for Ryan McMahon, and maybe the Yankees would have scored. Then again, Wells’ double was not exactly the latest in a long line of hard contact. And while his manager Aaron Boone called the play “a mistake,” he pointed blame for the Game 1 loss elsewhere.

“Just obviously not a good decision there,” Boone said. “… But biggest issue is just Rasmussen shutting us down.”

Boone is not one to bash players publicly, so it should be no surprise that he did not throw the Yankees’ Game 1 loss on Wells’ back. But he was by no means just deflecting when he pointed to Rasmussen as the main reason the Yankees trail this best-of-five series, 1-0.

For the second time in as many weeks – though with far greater stakes this time – Rasmussen carved through the Yankees lineup so effectively that he carried a no-hitter into the seventh inning. Saturday, he took it into the eighth, pounding the strike zone with such effective stuff and command that even as Yankees hitters knew they would get pitches in the zone, they could not adjust to hit many of them well. They worked two walks, though none after the third, and struck out 10 times against him.

“I feel like he's got a lot of different ways to beat you. Starts with great command,” Boone said. “And when he has a presence on both sides of the plate and up and down, and you have to respect the four-seam on him, he was able to freeze us a lot on different sides of the plate, as well.”

Rasmussen generated 23 swings-and-misses, most in a postseason game by the swing-and-miss happy Rays since Statcast started tracking them. The 31-year-old had never generated more. Luis Garcia Jr. said it seemed like Rasmussen didn’t miss a single spot. Jazz Chisholm Jr. said the same thing, brushing off the idea that Wells’ play was decisive.

“If you’re watching him run the bases, you could see out of the box he was hustling like hell and just trying to get there to make something happen,” Chisholm said. “If they threw that ball away, you never know what happens. I feel like, just keep going. Pat him and say, ‘yeah. It happened. But who cares?’”

Wells, for his part, explained he did have good reason for defying the traditional baseball wisdom of not risking the final out of the inning at third base – so advised because generally, a base hit is needed to score with two outs and generally, a runner can score from second on a base hit just as easily as third.

But Wells said on the fast turf of Tropicana Field, which shoots the ball to outfielders more quickly than many surfaces, he felt he was not necessarily guaranteed to score on a base hit with two outs. From third base, he would.

“I thought I had a good chance to get there,” Wells said. “So can’t hang your head too much.”

The Yankees, too, have no immediate reason to sulk. They will throw Cam Schlittler in Game 2 against Freddy Peralta, a matchup that would seem to favor the Yankees, even though Peralta was the American League Pitcher of the Month after the Rays helped him rediscover his form in September.

The real problem they face, however, is that they now need to win three of the next four games – and will face Rasmussen again in one of them, potentially with their season on the line. The Rays have not lost a game Rasmussen started since July 9. That day, the Yankees scored six runs against him in 2.1 innings.

“I think we're due the next time,” Boone said. “We've done it before, and I know our guys are very confident. So the reality is, you know, you want to go deep in the playoffs, you've got to beat probably a great pitcher at some point. So we've got to find a way.”

Drew Rasmussen was so good Saturday night that he even exceeded the ridiculous playoff bar that Yankee arms have established for these playoffs. And it doubtless stings the Yanks that the Rays ace was able to silence their bats so thoroughly in Game 1 of the AL Division Series. 

But Gerrit Cole’s sharp stuff, another strong wave of pitching from the bullpen and the looming spectre of Cam Schlittler in Game 2 (and Game 5) are all evidence that this ALDS is far from over. Yes, even if the Yankees now have to win three times in four games with Rasmussen due for another start in this series.

“We got to get them tomorrow – well, Monday,” Cole told reporters at Tropicana Field afterward, looking ahead to Game 2. “It’s an opportunity to bounce back. We know they’re a tough opponent. Look, they’re going to land some blows and you’ve got to take blows in the postseason and dish them out, too.”

Cole delivered five solid innings, marred only by a terrific swing by the Rays’ No. 2 hitter, Jonathan Aranda. Aranda’s solo home run in the third inning was the game’s only run. Cole allowed five hits, struck out five and walked one and then Ryan Weathers (1.0 IP), Paul Blackburn (1.2 IP) and Brent Headrick (0.1 IP) combined for three scoreless frames of relief.

Rasmussen took a no-hitter into the eighth and got close enough to history that the game broadcast brought up Don Larsen and Roy Halladay. Cole wasn’t that electric. But he did put the Yankees in position to win.

“Gerrit’s had a really good year,” Aaron Boone said at the postgame podium. “I thought he threw the ball well. I thought they took some tough at-bats against him…Being a really tight game, it felt like it was leverage the whole game and he executed some really good pitches against some of their best hitters in the right spot.

“I thought he got us off to a good start. They made him work and then our bullpen picked it up from there. So I thought we did a really good job, obviously, on the mound, doing what we needed to do to give ourselves a chance to win.”

Yankee pitching has allowed three runs in 26 innings over three playoff games so far. That’s a 1.04 ERA. Opponents are batting .135 against Yankee pitchers, who have allowed only 12 hits.

Schlittler has certainly been the headliner and he will start Monday’s Game 2 at the Trop against Freddy Peralta, who Tampa Bay acquired from the Mets at the deadline. Schlittler overwhelmed the Red Sox for 6.1 shutout innings in Game 1 of the Wild Card Series, a nifty follow-up to what was almost certainly a Cy Young regular season.

Should this series get to a deciding Game 5 in St. Petersburg, Fla., Schlittler would be on regular rest for the assignment.

“He’s been our guy all year,” catcher Austin Wells told reporters. “It was a great game, all around, for the pitchers (on Saturday). So I think we’re going to look forward to continuing that on our side and hopefully get to their guy.”

“It’s the playoffs,” Boone said. “Here we go. Every day’s important. Every win is an exhale and exciting, and the losses are gut punches. But you’ve got to just keep moving and know that you’re going to have some tough days, too.

“We’re obviously always thrilled when we hand the ball to Cam, and hopefully we can go out and put some points on the board to support him and come out of here with a split and head back home.”

We’ll see what Cole’s role will be the rest of the way. With Schlittler booked for two games, and Max Fried and Carlos Rodón pegged to start, in some order, Games 3 and 4, it’s probably in the bullpen or the next series, should the Yanks advance.

Aranda’s home run meant he suffered a hard-luck loss in Game 1. It came on a changeup that Cole wanted down and away. “It got to the edge, but it didn’t get down enough,” Cole told reporters at the Trop. “It’s a pretty steep price to pay. But he crushed it. That’s the way it goes.”

At the time, did Cole think one run could beat the Yanks? “No,” he replied.

As long as the Yanks keep holding opponents to one, this series should have some twists and turns coming. Even if Rasmussen has another start remaining. Even if the Rays have more quality arms beyond him.

“The reality is, if you want to go deep in the playoffs, you got to beat a great pitcher,” Boone said. “Hopefully, we get another crack at him and do better.”  

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — On a night perfection was required, mere quality was not enough for Gerrit Cole. 

The third of three Yankees aces, in his first start of this postseason, held down a strong Rays lineup and threw just one pitch he could regret in five innings. 

He was solid. He was not Drew Rasmussen. 

Cole allowed a home run to Jonathan Aranda that ended up being the difference in the game if not the story of the game. Against a Yankees lineup that had scored 18 runs over two wild-card contests against Boston, Rasmussen threw a one-hit shutout in a 1-0 Rays victory in Game 1 of the ALDS on Saturday. 

Pitching on nine days of rest, Cole betrayed little rust, looked strong against the peskiest lineup in baseball and on most nights would have walked off the mound smiling. 

There was no grin because he blinked. 

With one out in the third inning, Cole aimed a 2-2 changeup down and away. It was away, on the edge of the strike zone. It was not down. 

“It’s a pretty steep price to pay,” Cole said after he allowed five hits and a walk with five strikeouts. “He crushed it. That’s just the way it goes.” 

Cole’s last batter of the game was the most entertaining at-bat of the night. Against Junior Caminero, the two stars battled for 11 pitches before Austin Wells ran to the mound to talk with Cole. After that breather, Cole turned to a 12th-pitch knuckle-curve that grazed the top of the zone to freeze one of the best hitters in baseball. 

One of the best pitchers of his generation walked off the mound believing he would return for the sixth. He did not. 

After 82 pitches, he talked with manager Aaron Boone, who had ridden Cam Schlittler and Max Fried longer in the wild-card series and pulled the plug early on Cole. 

“[Boone and I] left the conversation at the end on the same page,” Cole said, choosing his words carefully, of a move that would have gained more scrutiny if Ryan Weathers, Paul Blackburn and Brent Headrick had not combined for three scoreless, hitless innings in relief. 

Boone said Cole “got us off to a good start” but said the Rays “made him work,” which is part of the identity of a team that rarely strikes out. 

As early as the beginning of the fourth inning, after Cole gave up a leadoff single to Victor Mesa Jr., Boone began warming up a reliever (Blackburn in that case, and Headrick began throwing as the fifth inning began). On a night Cole allowed just one run but seven balls struck at least 95 mph, Boone may have seen warning signs. 

Cole won many battles Saturday, but not with his manager behind closed doors and not with Rasmussen. 

“That was a lot of fun,” he acknowledged of the battle of aces. “He was unbelievable.”

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The opportunity for Giancarlo Stanton finally arrived.

His first at-bat in five-plus months just did not turn into a moment, but what Aaron Boone saw in it was one of the few things he liked in the Yankees’ 1-0 loss to the Rays in Game 1 of the ALDS on Saturday night at Tropicana Field.

With the Yankees trailing by a run in the top of the ninth, and Rays righty closer Bryan Baker entering from the bullpen, Boone sent Stanton up to pinch hit for the left-handed-hitting Ryan McMahon to lead off the frame.

Stanton, who last took an at-bat April 24 because of three separate calf strains, ended up striking out on five pitches. The veteran slugger fouled off the first pitch, took two balls and a strike, then foul-tipped a 96 mph fastball on the inner third into the catcher’s mitt for Strike 3.

“Baker’s obviously had a great year,” Boone said. “Really tough, really reverse [splits] guy. So not that I was going to hit for a lot of my lefties there, but felt the threat of Giancarlo — I thought he had a really good at-bat. I thought he was on all [five] pitches. I thought he was seeing the changeup well. I thought he got a good swing off right out of the bat.

“I liked what I saw. He took the right at-bat. He just didn’t clip it. So yeah, I’m going to take my shot with a hitter there and got [José Caballero] to run for him and we’ll take our shot right there.”

Stanton had been 5-for-7 with one strikeout in his career against Baker, with the potential to tie the game on one swing, though it did not come to fruition.

Ryan Weathers also made his first appearance since Aug. 22, relieving Gerrit Cole in the sixth inning and getting three groundouts to first base against three left-handed hitters.

“I felt super healthy,” Weathers said. “Felt good. Stuff was coming out really good.”

The lefty, who spent the last month-plus rehabbing a left forearm flexor strain, indicated he should be available for Monday’s Game 2, especially because he only needed nine pitches to retire the side Saturday.

The Yankees left Weathers off their roster for the wild-card series to give him more time to build up, hoping it would allow him to be available more often in the ALDS.

The other lefties in the Yankees bullpen are heavily used setup man Brent Headrick and the soft-tossing Ryan Yarbrough. Headrick lost some velocity late in the season, looking like he might be running out of gas, while Yarbrough is mostly on the roster to offer some length if the Yankees get into a tough spot.

To add Weathers, the Yankees took veteran utility player Amed Rosario off their roster to go with 11 pitchers and 15 position players.

The righty-hitting Rosario was on the wild-card roster against the Red Sox, but the Rays have fewer left-handed pitchers and the Yankees already have Paul Goldschmidt, Heliot Ramos and Stanton as right-handed pinch hitting options. Because Anthony Volpe is more of a threat on the bases and offers better defense at second base (and potentially third), Rosario became what Boone described as the “odd man out.”

“Tough call, because of how important he’s been to our team,” Boone said. “But he understands, too, and he’ll be the same Rosie he always is as far as what he means to the team and in that room.”

Following the Yankees' 1-0 loss to the Rays in Game 1 of the ALDS, manager Aaron Boone and the players spoke on the game...

What made Rasmussen unhittable?

Rays ace Drew Rasmussen had the start of a lifetime.

He pitched 7.2 no-hit innings against the Yankees before Austin Wells' double in the eighth broke it up, but the right-hander completely dominated New York, tossing eight shutout innings, allowing one hit and two walks while striking out 10 batters.

Rasmussen broke several franchise postseason records in the process, and the Yankees could only tip their cap after the game.

"I thought he was really sharp. I thought his change-up was good for him and in play," Boone said. "Obviously, with our left-handed hitters, it looked like he had the cutter going when he needed to. Then the good four-seamer where he mixed in some sinkers off of it. His command is just really good and kind of what sets him apart. He's got a great arsenal. The ability to pitch on both sides of the plate and up and down obviously makes him challenging and one we've had a hard time solving."

"He just hit all his spots today. He was on," Jazz Chisholm Jr., who had one of the Yankees' two walks, said. "He wasn’t leaving anything [over the plate]. He wasn’t giving in. He wasn’t leaving it middle 3-2, he wasn’t scared to walk guys and get the next guy." 

"You just have to give him credit. All night, the pitches had really good effects," Luis Garcia Jr. said through an interpreter. "All eight innings, it felt like he never missed a pitch, location-wise and execution-wise. Sometimes you just have to give credit to the opposing pitcher." 

This isn't the first time Rasmussen dominated the Yankees. Back on Sept. 22 in the Bronx, Rasmussen allowed one run on one hit across 6.2 innings while striking out 11 batters. Aside from one start where New York picked up six runs in 2.1 innings off of him, Rasmussen's previous two starts this season against the Yankees saw the right-hander toss 13 shutout innings. 

"I feel like he's got a lot of different ways to beat you. Starts with great command," Boone said of Rasmussen's dominance. "And when he has a presence on both sides of the plate and up and down, and you have to respect the four-seam on him, he was able to freeze us a lot on different sides of the plate, as well. His mix was really strong. I thought he kind of used everything against us, and he cut us up again."

"When a guy's executing like that, the plan is to keep battling," Garcia said of Rasmussen taking a no-hitter into the eighth. "Maybe getting into long counts, long at-bats, but he kept executing pitches and attacking the zone. We tried to have long at-bats, but he was pretty sharp tonight."

With a best-of-five series, the Yankees will likely face Rasmussen one more time. But Boone isn't concerned with that, and is confident in his team to figure out the Rays' ace.  

"I think we're due the next time," he said. "We've done it before, and I know our guys are very confident. So the reality is, you know, you want to go deep in the playoffs, you've got to beat probably a great pitcher at some point. So we've got to find a way. Hopefully, we're in a position to get another crack at him and execute a little better."

Austin Wells, who got the Yankees' lone hit, acknowledged Rasmussen's past dominance against the team, but likes his team's chances.

"He’s pitched really well against us in his career," Wells said. "Every guy in this lineup likes our chances. He pitched incredible. Made pitches when he needed to. Got outs. Hard contacts, weak contacts, they are all outs. Hopefully, we’ll go out there and face him again in this series. You have to have as much confidence as possible. It was a 1-0 game. It was hard-fought."

Taking a shot with Stanton

Giancarlo Stanton has not swung a bat in a major league game since April. 

But in Game 1 of the ALDS, Boone saw an opportunity to utilize his slugger off the bench. That's why he was on the ALDS roster, after all. 

Down 1-0 in the ninth, Stanton pinch-hit for Ryan McMahon and took on Rays closer Bryan Baker. Stanton worked the count to 2-2 before the right-handed Baker threw a 96.3 mph fastball inside on Stanton for a foul-tip strikeout.

Stanton, despite being on the Wild Card Series roster, did not get an at-bat, in the two games. After the game, Boone was asked why he used Stanton in that moment.

"Just Baker's obviously had a great year. Really tough, really reverse guy," Boone explained. "So not that I was going to hit for a lot of my lefties there, but felt the threat of Giancarlo -- I thought he had a really good at-bat. I thought he was on all four pitches. I thought he was seeing the change-up well. I thought got a good swing off right out of the bat. I liked what I saw, like he was -- he took the right at-bat. He just didn't clip it. So, yeah, I mean, I'm going to take my shot with a hitter there and got [Jose Caballero] to run for him and we'll take our shot right there."

Stanton slashed .256/.302/.422 with an OPS of .724 to go along with three home runs across 24 regular season games this year before he went down with a calf strain.

The Yankees came into the ALDS riding high, having crushed their archrivals in the Wild Card Series, the lineup coming alive just in time. Unfortunately, just as quickly as they woke up, the bats fell asleep, no match for Rays ace Drew Rasmussen in a 1-0 shutout loss to Tampa Bay.

New York’s downfall started (and in a way ended) when Gerrit Cole gave up a solo home run in the third, the primary blemish in what was a five-inning outing with five hits and one earned run. Cole left a changeup up, and Jonathan Aranda sent a deep fly into the right-field seats:

Cole was replaced by Ryan Weathers, who made his return to the mound after a stint on the injured list with a left elbow injury, and didn’t allow the Rays’ offense to inflict any more damage. Paul Blackburn replaced Weathers in the bottom of the seventh and recorded one walk in 1.2 innings. Brent Headrick followed, who walked one batter before escaping with two runners on to end the eighth.

As for the Yankees offense, well, there isn’t much to speak of, as the lineup Boone sent out simply couldn’t make any headway against the Rays’ elite pitching staff. Rasmussen ended up pitching eight scoreless innings, allowing only one hit and two walks, completely shutting down the Yankees’ ambitions of getting ahead early in the series. Rasmussen kept the Yankees not just out of the run column, but blanked them in the hit column until the eighth, missing a no-hitter by just four outs as Austin Wells broke things up with a two-out double in the eighth.

Yet that moment also brought one of the most notable errors in the Yankees’ decision-making, with Wells attempting to stretch his double into a triple. His speed wasn’t enough to get him to third, and the Yankees’ catcher got thrown out to end the inning. Victor Mesa made the throw to shortstop Taylor Walls, who immediately tagged Wells as he went for the slide. An aerial view showed that third base coach Luis Rojas was trying to hold Wells up, so it really was just Wells inexplicably attempting to get to third base with two outs:

It’s worth noting that Giancarlo Stanton made his first appearance at the plate since April, pinch-hitting for Ryan McMahon, and sadly struck out in four pitches from Rays reliever Bryan Baker as the Yankees’ attempt at a ninth-inning rally went nowhere fast, Baker also striking out Ben Rice and getting Cody Bellinger to ground out to end the game.

Though the Yankees may be on the road and striving for a victory in Game 2, it remains to be seen whether Boone will change the lineup and experiment with other position players to shuffle the order. There wasn’t much to smile about today, with the small exceptions of Stanton’s cameo appearance, and the solid showing from Weathers after a layoff. Sunday will give the Yankees another day of rest to regroup. Hopefully, we’ll see a different result come Monday.

Box Score

LOS ANGELES — It was as if six months of torment, six months of pent-up frustration, and six months of trying to prove himself to a new organization and fanbase, came pouring out of his soul Saturday afternoon with one swing of the bat.

Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Kyle Tucker, or commonly known in Los Angeles as a $60-million-a year bust, swung mightily, stood at the plate, and watched the ball sail high and deep into the Dodgers bullpen, before taking off on a home-run trot as the paid crowd of 50,194 at Dodger Stadium screamed in ecstasy.

When Tucker strolled around the bases, he threw his hands up in the air between first and second, and when he rounded third, broke into a grin that could be seen all the way to Pasadena. His teammates pounded the dugout in euphoria, and when he came towards the dugout, vigorously high-fived teammate Teoscar Hernandez, and received a sunflower seed shower and bear hug from Mookie Betts that was so tight he nearly lost his breath.

“I think I was more excited than him," said Hernandez, who singled ahead of Tucker in the sixth inning of the Dodgers’ 5-3 victory over Atlanta in Game 1 of the National League Division Series. “We've been going through a lot this year, but we stayed together. We have each other's back."

The Dodgers will tell you it didn’t really matter who was their offensive hero, but to a man, they couldn’t have been happier that it was Tucker.

“We were all excited for him," infielder Miguel Rojas said. “Tucker is a superstar, man. He’s a great hitter, a great player, he knows when to turn it on. …There’s no doubt in my mind that he was going to come through in the biggest stage of our season.

“Even if he doesn’t, I really don’t care. He shouldn’t have the weight of the team on his shoulder that he has to carry this team. Just do your job, go out, and enjoy your season.’’

Well, his debut season with the Dodgers just became a whole lot more enjoyable, with his two-run home run not only providing Tarik Skubal all of the support he needed after giving up just two hits and one run in six innings, but it was sweet redemption for Tucker.

“I mean, I was excited," he said, surrounded by a horde of reporters at his locker. “Anytime you can contribute to a win, whether it’s early in the game, late in the game, is huge. So I just try to do my part. Same thing with everyone else in this clubhouse. No one’s going out there putting up selfish at-bats or anything. It doesn’t really matter how you do statistically as long as you’re coming away with a win.

“Everyone’s just trying to help each other get to the end goal of winning a World Series, so it’s a nice start today with the win."