The New York Yankees rallied late to beat the Washington Nationals 5-3 on Sunday afternoon at Nationals Park, completing a three-game series sweep and improving to 54-42 heading into the All-Star break. Ben Rice’s go-ahead, two-run triple in the eighth inning erased a one-run deficit and helped New York finish its road trip on a high note while remaining three games behind the Tampa Bay Rays in the American League East.
Washington grabbed an early lead when James Wood crushed a leadoff home run in the first inning, his third homer of the series. Yankees starter Will Warren settled in after that, allowing just one run on four hits over five innings while striking out two and walking two. New York finally broke through in the fifth as Cody Bellinger doubled before Jazz Chisholm Jr. tied the game with an RBI single. Austin Wells followed later in the inning with a two-out RBI single to give the Yankees a brief 2-1 lead.
The Nationals answered with solo homer off Tim Hill in the sixth and took a 3-2 advantage in the seventh after Chisholm’s throwing error extended the inning. New York responded immediately in the eighth, as Max Schuemann singled and stole second before Trent Grisham walked. Rice then drove a fly ball off the left-field wall for a two-run triple to put the Yankees back in front. José Caballero added a sacrifice fly in the ninth for insurance, while Paul Blackburn retired all six batters he faced over the final two innings, striking out two to earn the save.
The Yankees are off during the All-Star break before returning Friday to open a three-game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Yankee Stadium. First pitch is scheduled for 8:05 p.m., and the starting pitching matchup has yet to be announced.
Kyle leads sports coverage and hosts the Concrete Jungle podcast. Have a lead or question? Send it to kyle@fingerlakes1.com.