On Thursday night, the New York Yankees pulled off an extraordinary comeback in the Bronx against the Seattle Mariners. Despite being hitless late in the game and trailing 5-0 in the eighth inning, with star pitcher Brian Woo throwing a no-hitter, the Yankees dramatically turned the tables. At one point, their chances of winning plummeted to just 1.3%. Jazz Chisholm Jr., an All-Star and Home Run Derby participant, broke Woo’s no-hit bid and set off a rally. Ben Rice followed with a hit, and Austin Wells drove in the first run for New York. After that, reliever Matt Brush replaced Woo, and Giancarlo Stanton smashed a pinch-hit home run, narrowing Seattle’s lead to 5-3.
Entering the ninth inning down by two runs, the Yankees kept their hopes alive as Austin Wells delivered with two outs. Moving into extra innings, activated Devin Williams managed to hold the Mariners for a bit but things took a turn in the bottom of the 10th. Yankees manager Aaron Boone sent Paul Goldschmidt to pinch hit, and although he was intentionally walked, Trent Grisham’s unintentional walk loaded the bases. New York’s Aaron Judge then hit a walk-off sacrifice fly, with Anthony Volpe making a remarkable slide to evade the tag and score the winning run. This comeback marked the first time since June 24, 1977, that a team overcame a deficit of five or more runs with no hits after the eighth inning to win the game.
The thrilling victory improved the Yankees to 52-41, closing the gap with the Toronto Blue Jays to just two games in the AL East, while the Mariners fell to 48-45, falling behind Boston for a wild-card spot.
Fan Take: This jaw-dropping comeback epitomizes the unpredictability and excitement of baseball, reminding fans that no game is ever truly over until the final out. It also showcases the resilience and clutch performance that make baseball moments unforgettable, potentially inspiring more thrilling finishes in the season ahead.