ATLANTA – Not even the last overthrow of Aroldis Chapman could stop the Yankees.
They won for the eleventh straight game on Tuesday night, with a 5-4 win over the Braves at Truist Park, but not before a later drama and a Wandy Peralta rescue.
The Yankees led 5-3 in the ninth inning, when Chapman ceded a single to Adam Duvall. With two out, he walked to Ehire Adrianza. After the visit of pitching coach Matt Blake, Chapman nearly destroyed Ozzie Albies, but Albies committed a foul for a 3-2 pitch and then beat a single on one ground to Rougned Odor in the third to charge the bases.
Chapman brought Jorge Soler by force to Duvall, reducing the Yankees’ lead and leading Peralta to face Freddie Freeman.
Freeman made another complete count before sending a flying ball to the deep left, where Joey Gallo made the catch to finish it off, finally allowing the Yankees to exhale.
It’s the Yankees ’longest winning streak since winning 11 straight in 1985. That year they finished second in the AL East behind the Blue Jays, but lost the postseason.
This year is estimated to have a different ending, as the Yankees try to run the Rays for the division title and secure at least one wildcard spot.
On Tuesday they got a two-run homer from DJ LeMahieu and solo shots from Giancarlo Stanton and Odor, as well as solid work off the bullring, aside from Chapman.
This came after Andrew Heaney ceded a two-run double to Dansby Swanson in the first.
Stanton continued his hot hit with a homer to advance to the front of the second.
In the fourth, Aaron Judge doubled to open the scoring. Gallo whispered looking and Stanton came out on the ground, moving the judge to third place.
The referee marked Gary Sánchez’s single to the left to tie the score at 2-2.
The Yankees took the lead in the next inning, when Andrew Velazquez played a single game and LeMahieu hit a two-goal home run against Braves starter Charlie Morton to make it 4-2. It was only LeMahieu’s ninth match of the season.
Heaney settled in and allowed only a couple of runs in four innings before being eliminated.
Before leaving, Heaney came out of a jam at the bottom of the room.
With runners in first and second and two out, Heaney seemed to hit Joc Pederson with a 2-2 throw. But Pederson began to sway and home referee Chris Conroy ruled he was going to finish the entry. Pederson argued the call and was expelled.
After finishing first in fifth place, Albert Abreu gave a single to Albies and walked with Soler. It was rejected by the left Joely Rodriguez, who got Freeman to go to the ground with third place.
The Yankees couldn’t change the double play, leaving runners in the corners with two outs for Austin Riley.
Riley pointed to the center to score Albies, and Freeman tried to do everything right from the start. The judge ran to throw the ball and fired at Velázquez, who threw Sanchez hard on the plate.
Sanchez applied a slip tag to Freeman, but was called. Rehearsals proved he could be safe and the Braves challenged the play, but the call remained, leaving the Yankees ahead for a run.
Richard Rodriguez entered Atlanta to start the sixth, after Morton had turned down nine in five innings.
The smell marked the seventh with a long homer to former Yankee striker Chris Martin.
Chad Green threw a seven-goal seventh in the seventh before conceding consecutive singles to Freeman and Riley with an out in the eighth.
With Atlanta falling by two runs, Riley foolishly tried to get to second place in the play and was kicked out of second. Green got Swanson to land on the third to finish the entry.