The New York Yankees were down four runs through five innings on Thursday night at Yankee Stadium. The game felt like it was drifting away. Cam Schlittler had thrown three innings in a planned tune-up start before the bullpen took over, and Tampa Bay had built its lead against New York’s relievers.
Then George Lombard Jr. changed the game twice in three innings.
The rookie shortstop delivered an improvised slide home in the seventh and a go-ahead two-run homer to the second deck in the eighth, powering a 6-4 comeback victory over the Tampa Bay Rays.
The Slide That Nobody Had Seen Before
Lombard was on third base in the seventh when a Hopkins wild pitch ricocheted off the backstop and Hicks recovered it quickly. Lombard broke for home. The catcher already had the ball.
“Oh, I’m out,” Lombard said. “So I got to make something up.”
He scrapped his original plan to go in feet-first when he saw Hicks already down in front of the plate. Lombard popped up, stepped past Hicks, and flung himself across the plate with his right hand reaching for the dirt before the tag could arrive. The run cut the deficit to 4-3.
“I was in trouble. I had to figure something out,” Lombard said. “Just kind of happened.”
Manager Aaron Boone had a simpler explanation.
“Just a really good athletic play by the old soccer player,” Boone said.
The Homer That Finished It
An inning later, Lombard drove a Matz sinker into the left field second deck for a two-run homer that put the Yankees ahead 6-4.
“It was cool,” Lombard said. “Trying to look for something out over, not trying to do too much with it.”
Boone has watched the rookie settle in quickly since his call-up, and Thursday’s performance reinforced what the organization already believed.
“He’s been pretty cool, calm and collected since he’s been up here,” Boone said. “We all know he’s got a great head on his shoulders. And he’s a really good player. We have a ton of confidence in him.”
Final Word for the Yankees
“The biggest thing is how good you have to be at wiping the last day off and moving on,” Lombard said. “It’s baseball and you’re going to have another chance tomorrow.”
Thursday was not one of those days he needs to wipe off. It was the kind of night that builds belief heading into October. A slide nobody had seen before. A homer for the lead.
The Yankees have a rookie who plays with instinct, hits with power, and talks like he belongs. The postseason is days away. Lombard is making sure he is part of it.
Yankees’ George Lombard Jr. Makes Honest Admission After Win Over Rays