//Yankees going for 10th straight win over rival Red Sox

Yankees going for 10th straight win over rival Red Sox

When it comes to dominating the Boston Red Sox, the New York Yankees are at levels not seen since the early years of Hall of Famer Mickey Mantle and Whitey Ford’s careers.

The Yankees can get their 10th straight win over their longtime rival Monday night when they host the Red Sox in the finale of a four-game series.

New York’s nine-game winning streak is its longest over Boston since it tied a team record with 12 consecutive victories from Aug. 16, 1952, to April 23, 1953, a time when Mantle and Ford were just starting their storied careers and Boston legend Ted Williams was serving in the Korean War.

The latest wins have occurred when the Yankees are dealing with injuries to Giancarlo Stanton (strained left hamstring), Aaron Judge (strained right calf) and DJ LeMahieu (strained left thumb). After placing LeMahieu on the injured list, the Yankees continued their streak with a 4-2 win Sunday.

Mike Ford, one of several fill-ins to contribute, hit a two-run homer and drove in three runs. Ford’s big night occurred the night after Clint Frazier tied a career-high with five RBIs as he is splitting time at designated hitter and in right field in place of Judge.

“Obviously, we had some experience with that last year, and I think it’s a good representation of the quality work our front office has done in acquiring good talent that can fill in when some of our better players get injured,” New York reliever Zack Britton said.

Without some of their stars, the Yankees are also 9-0 in games played at Yankee Stadium. The only times they began 10-0 at Yankee Stadium was 1951 and 1987, and even without fans, the routine with the various safety protocols has contributed to their quick start at home, according to players.

“There’s still something to having a home-field advantage even without fans, (and) especially with the stringent guidelines for this year, it just makes the day flow better,” Ford said.

The Yankees will actually get someone back from the injured list Monday. Before Sunday’s game, manager Aaron Boone said closer Aroldis Chapman is expected to return after recovering from coronavirus.

Besides their losing skid to the Yankees, the Red Sox have been outscored 100-50 in losing 14 of the last 15 meetings with New York. Boston is trying to avoid being swept in a four-game series for the second straight season at Yankee Stadium, where they have lost 10 straight for the third time in team history.

Boston’s struggles against the Yankees are also part of an AL-worst 6-16 record that is their worst 22-game start since 1996. The Red Sox are on a seven-game losing streak and own an 8.70 ERA while getting outscored 67-32.

Before Sunday’s game, the players held a team meeting at an outdoor space in the team hotel.

“As a group we got together and talked about some things,” said Kevin Pillar, who homered Sunday. “Really just trying to make the best of a unique situation with the season. I know things aren’t going really well. We’ve still got a ton of games left. We’ve got to stop feeling sorry for ourselves.”

The series will end with a matchup of left-handers when New York’s Jordan Montgomery opposes Boston’s Martin Perez.

Montgomery (2-1, 5.17 ERA) started the season series with Boston when he allowed one run on five hits in 5 2/3 innings July 31. After allowing five runs in Philadelphia on Aug. 6, Montgomery allowed three runs in six innings in Tuesday’s 9-6 win over the Atlanta Braves.

Montgomery is 1-0 with a 3.60 ERA in four career starts against Boston.

Perez (2-2, 3.38) is a rare bright spot on a team whose earned run average is 6.03. He has allowed four runs in his last three starts spanning 16 1/3 innings and allowed two runs in 5 2/3 innings in Tuesday’s 8-2 loss to Tampa Bay.

Perez is 2-2 with a 9.97 ERA in five career starts against the Yankees.

–Field Level Media