Yankees 1998 Tracker: Games 64, 65, 66

 

From now until the end of the season, we will be tracking the progress of the Yankees with their 1998 World Championship team, which won 114 games in the regular season.

Through 66 Games:
2022: 49-17

Game 64: 48-16 - Friday night: Yankees 12, Toronto 3

The Yankees won this one powered by an eight-fun fifth inning, in which Giancarlo Stanton had a two-run home runs, DJ LeMahieu had a solo shot, Joey Gallo had an RBI double, and Anthony Rizzo capped it off with a grand slam that made it 10-1 Yankees at the time. Rizzo also scored on Stanton's homer, as he was hit by a pitch to start the inning. Gallo added a two-run shot in the ninth that put it away for good at 12-3.

Jordan Montgomery had a great start for the Yankees to earn his second straight win and improve to 3-1 on the season with a 2.72 ERA. He went six innings, allowing two runs (both earned) on three hits and a walk, with five strikeouts.

Game 65: 49-16 - Saturday afternoon: Yankees 4, Toronto 0

Three Yankees pitchers combined for a shutout of the vaunted (overhyped?) Toronto lineup, led by Jameson Taillon's 5 2/3 innings, in which he scattered four hits and two walks, with eight strikeouts, to improve to 8-1 on the season, with a 2.70 ERA (yes, 0.02 better than Montgomery).

Aaron Hicks provided nearly all the Yankees' offense, as he had a three-run double in the fourth, and then Isiah Kiner-Falefa tacked one on in the sixth with an RBI double.

Game 66: 49-17 - Sunday afternoon: Toronto 10, Yankees 9

The Yankees looked like they were on their way to a sweep, as they led 8-3 in the sixth inning, powered by a solo home run from Gleyber Torres in the second, a two-run shot from Josh Donaldson in the third, an RBI double from Aaron Judge and a two-run double from Torres in the fifth, and solo homers from Kyle Higashioka and Marwin Gonzalez in the sixth.

Yankees starter Luis Severino stayed on for the sixth, and he exited with two on and none out, and eventually Miguel Casto allowed a grand slam to Lourdes Gurriel, Jr., that made it 8-7. 

In the seventh, with Wandy Peralta, who finished the sixth inning, still pitching for the Yankees, Teoscar Hernandez hit a three-run blast that made it 10-8 Jays.

Anthony Rizzo got a solo shot in the eighth, his 18th of the season, to bring the Yankees within 10-9, and that would be the final.

1998: 49-17 through 66 games

Game 64: 48-16 - June 17, 1998: Yankees 5, Baltimore 3

Andy Pettitte threw a gem, and outdueled Mike Mussina, to lead the Yankees past the Orioles.
The Yankees got on the board in the first inning when Darryl Strawberry hit a three-run homer, and then Joe Girardi hit a solo shot in the fourth to make it 4-0.
Rafael Palmeiro homered in the bottom of the fourth to get Baltimore on the board, and then after the Yankees got that run back in the top of the sixth, Joe Carter hit a solo shot to make it 5-2 Yankees.
Baltimore got a run on a sacrifice fly from Cal Ripken in the ninth off Mariano Rivera, who worked out of trouble to earn his 14th save of the season.
Pettitte went 7 1/3 innings, allowing two runs on six hits and two walks, with three strikeouts, to earn the win and improve to 8-5 on the season.
Mussina went six innings, allowing five runs on eight hits and three walks, with two K's, to drop to 5-4 on the season. Mussina joined the Yankees in 2001, and spent eight years in New York, and capped off his career with a 20-win season in 2008.

Game 65: 49-16 - June 18, 1998: Yankees 5, Cleveland 2

The Yankees got on the board in the fifth inning of this one against Indians starter Charles Nagy when Scott Brosius and Chuck Knoblauch each had RBI singles to make it 2-0.
Orlando "El Duque" Hernandez kept Cleveland off the board until the seventh, when Kenny Lofton got a two-run single to tie it.
In the ninth the Yankees loaded the bases against Paul Assenmacher, and Mike Jackson walked Brosius to force in a run, followed by a two-run single by Knoblauch to make it 5-2.
El Duque went 7 2.3 in this one, allowing two runs on seven hits and three walks, with seven strikeouts.
Jeff Nelson came on to get out of the eighth, and his 1/3 of an inning was good enough for the win, as he improved to 4-3 on the season. 
Mariano Rivera earned his 15th save of the season.

Game 66: 49-17 - June 19, 1998: Cleveland 7, Yankees 4
Cleveland got on the board in the bottom of the second inning when Jim Thome led off the frame with a solo home run off Yankees starter David Cone.
Scott Brosius hit a solo home run off Cleveland starter Jaret Wright in the top of the third to get the run back for the Yankees and tie it at 1 .
In the bottom of the fourth, Cleveland got a run on a Manny Ramirez RBI single and off a Cone wild pitch to make it 3-1.
In the top of fifth, Brosius had a two-run single, followed by a Derek Jeter RBI groundout to make it 4-3 Yankees.
Cleveland came right back in the bottom of the fifth when Kenny Lofton hit a two-run shot to give them a 5-4 edge.
Jim Thome hit a two-run shot of his own off Graeme Lloyd in the seventh to make it 7-4 and put it away for Cleveland.
Jaret Wright got the win to improve to 6-4 as he went 6 2/3 innings, allowing four runs on seven hits and five walks, with five strikeouts.
David Cone took the loss for the Yankees, just his second of the season, as his record dropped to 9-2. He went 5 1/3 innings, allowing five runs on eight hits and three walks, with four strikeouts.

Where they stand: The 2022 Yankees remain on the pace set by the 1998 team, 49-17 through 66 games in the quest for 114 wins.