The Yankees played a big role in helping the White Sox win the first two games of a 4-game series.
In the first game, the Sox led 2-0 in the bottom of the 8th, and had a leadoff double. That’s a huge potential run, as a 3-run lead makes a big difference. The Yankees got the next two batters out, bringing up Dunn. I believe the pitcher was a righty. Dunn is a lefty, and the next batter was a righty. The count went to 3-0 on Dunn, and I had no problem walking him. The pitcher then threw a very hittable strike. This concerned me, but I thought perhaps they would gamble he wouldn’t swing on 3-0, and then throw a breaking ball out of the zone on the 3-1 pitch, hoping he’d go after it. Instead, the pitcher throws a fastball down the middle, and Dunn rips it for an RBI single, making it 3-0. I immediately said that run would come back to haunt them. The Yankees scored 2 in the top of the 9th to make it 3-2, which is how the game ended.
The next night, the Yankees took a 5-4 lead into the bottom of the 9th. The Sox had a man on first, no outs, and Dunn up. He’d just beaten them the night before on a fastball down the middle. The count on Dunn goes to 0-2. Does the pitcher throw a breaking ball out of the zone trying to get him to swing? Of course not. He throws an 0-2 fastball right down the middle, Dunn homers, and the game is over.