But he also said there’s another gear he can kick into, too.
Stanton hit a three-run homer, CC Sabathia pitched six effective innings, and the Yankees beat the Atlanta Braves 6-2 on Wednesday.
Rookie second baseman Gleyber Torres left the game in the top of the fifth inning because of tightness in his right hip and afterward was placed on the 10-day disabled list with a right hip strain.
”We’re hoping it’s a short stint. But we think we’ve got to deal with it this time because there is a small strain there,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said outside the home clubhouse after the game.
”Hopefully it won’t be something that it’s too long. Probably take us up to the All-Star break.”
After struggling in his first two months of his debut season in the Bronx, including three games at the end of March, Stanton managed just 11 homers and hit .245.
He settled in and improved in June with eight homers and a .298 average.
”Yeah I can always get better. So yeah, I got to put it together but there’s some balls that I’ve hit hard that could have been in the air, been better,” said Stanton, who’s 6 for 18 (.333) with two home runs and five RBIs through the first four games of July.
”But that’s talking millimeters of (a) difference here. But in terms of in the box, I feel very close.”
Aaron Judge added his 24th homer of the season in the seventh inning. He’s now homered in three of his past four games.
Catcher Kyle Higashioka also homered for the Yankees, becoming the ninth player since 1920 whose first three hits were home runs. Colorado’s Trevor Story homered for his first four big league hits on April 4-6, 2016.
The 28-year-old, who’s spent most of his first 10 professional seasons in the minors, except for a nine-game hitless stint last season, was surprised at what he’s been able to accomplish since his promotion June 25.
”I wouldn’t have thought that my first three hits in the major leagues would be homers, but the most important thing here is winning,” Higashioka said.
Sabathia (6-3) followed his impressive showing last Friday against Boston, the team with the best record in baseball, working out of a couple of jams for the Yankees, who have won six of their past eight after getting swept in three games at Tampa.
National League East-leading Atlanta loaded the bases with two outs in the first, but the 37-year-old struck out 20-year-old phenom Ronald Acuna Jr. on an 88 mph cutter.
”That’s a good lineup. They have a very good team, some good hitters,” Sabathia said. ”Even when I felt I was in control I still had to make pitches. They made me work today.”
The Braves have lost their past two games.
New York took a 1-0 lead in the second inning on Greg Bird’s RBI single off Atlanta starter Julio Teheran (6-6) Tre'Quan Smith Color Rush Jersey , who lasted just five innings, allowing five hits and five runs. He walked four and struck out 10.
The Yankees got to Teheran again in the third.
With a runner on first and two outs, Aaron Hicks walked. Stanton then fell behind 0-2 before hitting a line drive to the right field bleachers for his 21st homer of the season to make it 4-0.
After retiring the first two batters in the fourth, Teheran fell behind 2-0 against Higashioka before the rookie connected to the left field stands, extending the lead to 5-0.
”You can’t make mistakes to this team,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. ”The way that ball flies around in right center and over, it’s just dangerous. That’s why they are who they are. In spurts, he threw the ball really well.”
The Braves cut the deficit to 5-1 on an RBI grounder from Danny Santana with one out in the fifth. Johan Camargo hit his ninth home run of the season with two outs in the sixth that made it 5-2. But Sabathia limited the damage by retiring Dansby Swanson on a grounder to second with a runner aboard.
Atlanta failed to take advantage in the seventh inning against reliever Chad Green when its first two batters reached on a pair of singles. Green then got three fly outs to end the threat.
PUT ME IN COACH
With New York set to play 11 games in 10 days, beginning Friday at Toronto, Yankees manager Aaron Boone said he wanted to be ”greedy” with Thursday being their only day off, and held Austin Romine out of the starting lineup for the fourth consecutive day. Higashioka started for the fourth straight time behind the plate.
The Yankees have been short-handed at catcher since Romine left the game on June 29 against Boston in the seventh inning because of a tight left hamstring. Gary Sanchez has been on the 10-day disabled list since June 25 because of a strained right groin.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Braves: 1B Freddie Freeman, who was hit by a pitch in the third inning, left the game after the fourth because of a contusion in his right upper arm. He expects to be back in the lineup Thursday in Milwaukee.
”I tried to go down in the cage and swing and pretty much topped the ball off the tee,” Freeman said. ”I couldn’t really extend the arm going through the zone. I had no strength. It just kind of swelled up and it looks like a baseball on my tricep right now.”
WELCOME BACK
LHP Luiz Gohara, the No. 3 prospect in the Atlanta organization, arrived about 90 minutes before the first pitch after he was called up from Triple-A Gwinnett for the second time this season. RHP Evan Phillips, who threw 2 1/3 innings Tuesday night, was sent down to Trip
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The NFL doesn’t do the Cinderella story often, but one is coming when the Jacksonville Jaguars host the Buffalo Bills in an AFC wild-card game on Sunday.
The question is, which is the Cinderella story?
The Jaguars (10-6) won their first-ever AFC South title, are in the playoffs for the first time since 2007 and will host their first playoff game since 1999 at EverBank Field. Jacksonville was an NFL-worst 17-63 over the previous five seasons.
The Bills (9-7) were able to snap a playoff drought that dated back to 1999, winning the sixth seed and final wild-card berth with a win over Miami in the regular-season finale.
The winner of Sunday’s game will become the playoff darling.
There are other notable storylines as well.
Jaguars first-year coach Doug Marrone coached the Bills in 2013-14 before opting out of his contract and walking away with a $4 million payout when Buffalo changed ownership.
Marrone ended up missing out on an immediate head-coaching opening and was hired by former Jaguars coach Gus Bradley to be the offensive line coach. Marrone served as the interim coach for two games last season after Bradley was fired and was promoted to head coach last January.
Buffalo’s roster has changed over significantly since Marrone left. There are only six players on the roster that played under Marrone. The Bills have also already fired the coach that succeeded Marrone — Rex Ryan — hiring first-year coach Sean McDermott.
Marrone’s exit has come up before — at his introductory press conference last January and at the league’s scouting combine a month later when he acknowledged his “mistake.” He tried to deflect questions as best he could on Monday.
“There has obviously been a lot of stuff out there,” Marrone said. “That stuff is done. It is over. I can’t put it any simpler than that. I am not going to take away from my primarily responsibility to look back on a situation that occurred three years ago. If I do that, then I shouldn’t be the coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars. My job is to make sure I do the best job for this team.”
The two teams also completed a trade prior to the deadline Oct. 28 Steelers Cheap Jerseys , with the Bills sending high-priced defensive tackle Marcell Dareus for a 2018 fifth-round draft pick. The Jaguars had the worst run defense in the NFL when they made the move and ended up finishing 21st.
“I just told him to be smart (on Sunday),” Marrone said. “The last two games, he’s played well. He looks like he’s becoming more comfortable with the calls and what we do. Again, it’s hard to insert someone right away.”
The Bills don’t seem to match up well on paper. They rank 30th in sacks allowed and are 29th in total offense.
The Jaguars defense ranks first in the NFL in yards-per-play, pass defense and interceptions and is ranked second in total defense, sacks and scoring defense.
They could be in line for another dominant outing, especially if Bills star running back LeSean McCoy can’t play after injuring his ankle in Sunday’s win over Miami. McCoy has carried 287 times for 1,138 yards with six touchdowns this season and has a team-high 59 catches for 448 yards and two scores.
McDermott would have a tall task in replacing McCoy. Quarterback Tyrod Taylor is the team’s second-leading rusher with 427 yards and four touchdowns. Mike Tolbert (247 yards) would likely fill in for McCoy, but is a plodding runner compared to the electric McCoy. Marcus Murphy made his season debut on Sunday, rushing for 41 yards. He has eight career carries in the NFL.
“You never replace a player like LeSean,” McDermott said. “I’ve got a lot of confidence in Mike Tolbert and Murph and whoever else we put in the backfield. They did a nice job this past weekend and I expect them to do the same moving forward.”
McCoy did not practice Wednesday. McDermott did say McCoy is maximizing his treatment opportunities.
McCoy’s absence would put immense pressure on Taylor and the Bills’ 31st ranked passing offense.
“We want the best for Shady,” Taylor said. “If he’s healthy, we want him absolutely to be out there playing and giving us his all. If he’s not, we have a tremendous group of guys in the backfield that would be able to step in and carry the load. Of course, Shady’s a special playmaker. You miss him if he’s not out there, but at the same time, we can’t use it as an excuse.”
Defensively, Buffalo ranks 30th in stopping the run. That should give the Jaguars offense hope after two consecutive losses to close the regular season. The Jaguars lead the NFL in rushing offense and are fifth in scoring.
Point differential really separates the teams. The Jaguars are plus-149. That’s second best in the AFC behind New England and tied for third in the NFL. Buffalo is minus-57. There are nine teams that didn’t qualify for the playoffs with a better number.
Still, the Jaguars have shown a penchant lately for turnovers — the stat that will be above all others on Sunday. Quarterback Blake Bortles has thrown five interceptions the last two games and the team has committed seven turnovers in that span.
“Everyone realizes it’s your last chance,” Bortles said. “If you lose, you go home. It’s over. So there’s no reason and no excuse to not play as hard as you can every single play, but I think our guys do that on a weekly basis anyways and I’m excited to go out there for this opportunity.”
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