The Yankees hung five, then enjoyed a day at the beach.
After a tone-setting, five-run first inning, the Yankees continued to pile on early and often to finish off a three-game sweep of the Cubs in emphatic fashion with an 18-4 laugher of a win on Sunday afternoon in The Bronx.
With eight of their nine starters recording at least one hit — and six enjoying multi-hit days — the Yankees (44-16) won for the 11th time in their last 12 games. Their offense has fueled them lately, scoring eight runs or more in four of their last six games — including a season-high 18 runs on a season-high 17 hits Sunday.
Matt Carpenter, a late addition to the lineup for an under-the-weather Gleyber Torres, led the offensive onslaught by going 3-for-4 with a pair of home runs, a double and seven RBIs. In 10 games since signing with the Yankees in late May, after requesting his release from the Rangers’ Triple-A affiliate, the 36-year-old Carpenter has eight hits — six of which are home runs.
“I’ve played the game long enough to know what it feels like and looks like when I’m right. This is certainly that,” said the mustachioed Carpenter, a three-time All-Star who was ineffective across his final two seasons with the Cardinals.
“It kind of got away from me the last few years. I just didn’t really have it. I was able to put in a lot of good work and have a lot of people help me get it back, so it’s pretty rewarding. To be able to do it in New York City for the best team in baseball, and them having the faith to sign me, it means a lot. I’m enjoying it.”
For good measure, with a 13-run lead over the Cubs (23-36) in the eighth inning, Carpenter made a diving stop at third base to throw out a runner at first. It capped off a fine day for Carpenter, who was playing the field for the first time this season and was starting for the first time since June 3.
“I put him in the garage for a week and pulled him out for a spin,” manager Aaron Boone said.
Kyle Higashioka, another late lineup replacement for Jose Trevino (back), also chipped in by hitting his first two home runs of the year.
The Cubs’ greatest feat of the weekend proved to be holding the Yankees to two runs through 13 innings Friday night. The floodgates burst open from there, as the Yankees piled up 26 runs over the final two games to finish off the sweep.
“This offense is scary when they’re rolling like that,” said Jameson Taillon, who gave up three runs over five innings. “These are the Bronx Bombers.”
The Cubs actually led briefly Sunday — the only time this series — as potential summer trade target Ian Happ took Taillon deep for a solo home run in the top of the first inning.
The Yankees erased that quickly, though, as Aaron Judge singled to lead off the bottom of the first before Cubs right-hander Keegan Tompson walked three straight batters with one out to tie the game. Isiah Kiner-Falefa then put the Yankees ahead for good with a two-run double, and after a dropped pop-up, Joey Gallo added a two-out, two-run double that knocked Thompson out of the game.
Carpenter delivered his first home run of the day in the second inning, a three-run shot to right field that made it 8-1. The next one came in the sixth inning, a two-run bomb to go up 12-3, making him only the second player since 1900 to have six homers in his first seven hits with a team.
“He looks like the Matt Carpenter I’ve watched as an All-Star player with the Cardinals,” Boone said.
The Yankees put up another five spot in the seventh inning against reliever Sean Newcomb before the Cubs had first baseman Frank Schwindel pitch the eighth, when Higashioka crushed his second homer.
“It’s so much fun,” Carpenter said. “Watching this group compete on a day-to-day basis, both sides of the ball — offense, defense, pitching — [it’s] just a collective group effort.”
