Alex Verdugo’s tiebreaking single in the seventh inning lifted the New York Yankees to a 6-5 win over the Kansas City Royals in Game 1 of their AL Division Series on Saturday afternoon.
Verdugo also made a sliding catch along the left-field line to save at least one run.
The game featured five lead changes, a postseason first.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone praised Verdugo’s performance, saying, “What a game!”
Kansas City manager Matt Quatraro disputed a call that allowed Jazz Chisholm Jr. to reach base, saying, “I think we had a really good argument.”
Chisholm stole second and scored on Verdugo’s single.
Four Yankees relievers combined to allow one unearned run over four innings.
In other postseason action:
- Shohei Ohtani homered in his postseason debut, leading the Los Angeles Dodgers to a 7-5 win over the San Diego Padres.
- Mark Vientos and Brandon Nimmo keyed the New York Mets’ late comeback in a 6-2 win over the Philadelphia Phillies.
- The Cleveland Guardians scored five runs in the bottom of the first inning and never looked back in defeating the Detroit Tigers in Game 1 of the ALDS at Progressive Field, claiming a 1-0 series lead.
