{"id":12850,"date":"2024-10-10T21:47:19","date_gmt":"2024-10-11T04:47:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportrelay.com\/mlb\/?p=12850"},"modified":"2024-10-10T21:47:19","modified_gmt":"2024-10-11T04:47:19","slug":"yankees-royals-alds-game4-20241010","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportrelay.com\/mlb\/2024\/10\/10\/yankees-royals-alds-game4-20241010\/","title":{"rendered":"Yankees Eliminate Royals, Move on to ALCS"},"content":{"rendered":"

Yankees 3, Royals 1<\/h2>\n

The\u00a0New York Yankees<\/a>\u00a0beat the\u00a0Kansas City Royals<\/a>, 3\u20131, on Thursday at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri, to advance to the ALCS. The improved season is over for the Royals, losing to the one-seeded Bronx Bombers. The Yankees have advanced to their first ALCS since 2022. Although it wasn’t done in their highly explosive offensive domination, their pitching staff did the heavy lifting to see it through.<\/p>\n

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Yankees \u2013 Royals Game Summary<\/h3>\n
Going into an elimination game for the Royals, they looked to get their home fans into it early. However, the Yankees stole the thunder. Juan Soto<\/strong><\/a> singled to score Gleyber Torres<\/strong><\/a> in the first inning, giving the away side an early cushion. It was a zero-run fest for both teams until the fifth inning. Torres added to the fun, slapping an RBI single to score Soto. The Royals escaped the fifth with minor damage. However, in the next inning, Giancarlo Stanton<\/a><\/strong> singled to score Aaron Judge<\/a>.<\/strong> The Royals faced a tough outing from Gerrit Cole <\/a><\/strong>but got to him once. In the bottom of the sixth, Vinnie Pasquantino<\/a><\/strong> mashed an RBI double to score Bobby Witt Jr.<\/a><\/strong> from first. After Cole’s exit in the seventh, the bullpen closed the rest of the way for the Yankees, eliminating the Royals and moving on.<\/div>\n<\/article>\n
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What Went Right for the Royals<\/h3>\n

Tommy Pham<\/h4>\n

Tommy Pham<\/strong><\/a>, one of the league’s veterans, put on the performance he needed to in a clinical game. Pham went 3-for-3, with half of the team’s hits coming from him. He did all he could, but unfortunately, it was not enough to go through.<\/p>\n

What Went Wrong for the Royals<\/h3>\n

Free Bases<\/h4>\n

To many, it could be the story of why the Yankees are advancing. The Bronx Bombers had five free trips to first base Thursday, while the Royals had zero. It’s a small metric in the game that can cause so many ripple effects \u2014 another day of the Yankees earning free bases.<\/p>\n

Runners in Scoring Position<\/h4>\n

The Royals did not get a hit with runners in scoring position, but worse, the Royals only had two at-bats with runners in scoring position. Witt scored from first on the Pasquantino double.<\/p>\n

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What Went Right for the Yankees<\/h3>\n

Gerrit Cole<\/h4>\n

Cole bounced back in the fashion that a Cy Young Award winner should. He pitched seven innings, giving up six hits, one earned run, four strikeouts, and no walks. It was an immense day for Cole, whose Game One struggles were put past him in Kauffman Stadium.<\/p>\n

Bullpen<\/h4>\n

The bullpen for the Yankees is on fire. Reaching home plate against the relievers seems impossible, and they got the job done tonight again. Clay Holmes <\/a><\/strong>and former Royal Luke Weaver <\/a><\/strong>came together for three strikeouts and no hits for the last six outs. In elimination fashion, some fans remember when the bullpen blew it, but not in this series.<\/p>\n<\/article>\n

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What Went Wrong for the Yankees<\/h3>\n

High Fly Ball<\/h4>\n

The Bronx Bombers did not get the home run ball slamming in the vast acreage of Kauffman Stadium. It was a night of putting the ball in play but not into the outfield seats. Known for their heavy hitters, they will strive to carry it back to the cozier dimensions of Yankee Stadium for Game One of the ALCS.<\/p>\n<\/article>\n<\/article>\n

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Quick Hits<\/h3>\n

The Yankees have advanced to the American League Championship Series for a record 19th time and fourth in the last eight seasons, following 2017, 2019 and 2022 \u2026 The Yankees improve to 4\u20131 in five postseason series vs. the Royals (and 12-9 in 21 games). … Yankees relievers have not allowed an earned run over 15 2\/3 innings this postseason.<\/p>\n

The Royals became the third team in major league history to make the postseason following a 100-loss season (also the 2017 Twins and 2020 Marlins). … This is the first time in 40 years \u2014 since 1984 \u2014 that the Royals qualified for the postseason but did not reach the World Series.<\/p>\n<\/article>\n

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Looking Ahead<\/h3>\n

The Royals move on to 2025 with ambitions that their squad can make noise in the AL Central next season. The Yankees move on to the ALCS, where they will take on the Detroit Tigers<\/a> or Cleveland Guardians<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n

Royals manager Matt Quatraro<\/strong><\/a> spoke on the ALDS loss after the game, “Really proud of what they’ve done, and it stings, but that’s okay. It’s okay to have it sting because this isn’t where we want our season to end. This isn’t what we hoped for when we started. I think that’s okay to embrace it, that it doesn’t feel perfect.”<\/p>\n

Yankees skipper Aaron Boone<\/a><\/strong> spoke about how this Yankees team is different from his last two ALCS appearances: “I feel like we’re in a better place right now, just from a roster standpoint, health standpoint. But you get to this point; now we’ll be down to the final four. Everyone is feeling pretty good about their teams. That’s the case for me.”<\/p>\n

Main Photo:<\/h4>\n

Embed from Getty Images<\/a>