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NEW YORK – There have been 1,562 postseason games in MLB history.
Brock Holt did not have anything done: He hit for the cycle. The New York Yankees in Game 3 of the American League Division Series, the first pitch of the Yankees backup catcher Austin Romine into the Boston the right-field seats for a two-run homer.
The home run gives the Red Sox the largest road margin of victory in the history of the game, tied for the second-largest ever (behind Boston's 23-7 win over Cleveland in 1999) the Houston Astros.
Nathan Eovaldi gave the Red Sox their best postseason start as Jon Lester in Game 5 of the 2013 World Series, shutting down the high-powered Yankees Monday offense on the way to a 2-1 Red Sox lead in the ALDS.
Veteran MLB umpire Angel Hernandez Monday, September 3rd, 2009 at 4:00 PM
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"This one will remember for a long time," Holt said. "Obviously, you do not go into the game expecting to make history or do anything like that, let alone score 16 runs against a good New York Yankees team.
Holt is an unlikely hero. In fact, he did not start the first two games. Luis Severino, Sox manager Alex Cora inserted Holt at second base and the No. 7 slot. Holt went 4-for-6 with three runs and five RBIs.
Holt jump-started Boston's seven-run fourth inning with a soft liner Severino for a leadoff single. As the Red Sox battled around, he came up against Chad Green and lined up for the first two RBIs. Stephen Tarpley, knocking in another run, after grounding out in the sixth.
Then came the big blast in the ninth. "It was awesome.The type of guy he is, this is the guy you pull for," Red Sox first baseman Steve Pearce said.
"He's a grinder." "He was a grinder.
Holt was actually a surprise All-Star back in 2015, Boston's lone representative in a 78-84 season, but had struggled in the past two seasons. He missed a month in 2016 after suffering a concussion and hit .200 in limited action in 2017 he was trying to play through dizziness and other symptoms before a concussion specialist finally advised him to take some time off.
He's been bunched with a solid season as he's hitting. 277 / .362 / .411 while starting at six different positions. He swung at Romine's first pitch, at 79-mph breaking ball of some sort. It did not break enough.
"I knew I needed a home run." I saw Romine on the mound. "So you get a little antsy when a player is on the mound," Holt said. "I told everyone, 'Get me up, I need a home run for a cycle.' I was going to try to hit a home run, but I figured I'd be grounded to go, be out in front of something.
"But I'm scooted up in the box a little bit, and I was going to be swinging at anything and try to hook anything … That's probably the first time I've ever tried to do that. Seeing everyone going nuts in the dugout was a pretty cool moment for me. "
Boston's 7-9 hitters had gone 3-for-19 in the first two games. Cora also inserted Christian Vazquez in place of Sandy Leon and Vazquez delivered two hits. Along with Jackie Bradley Jr., the bottom three in the order went 7-for-15 with six runs and six RBIs.
Asked about the lineup changes, J.D. Martinez smiled and suggested, "You have to ask [Cora]. These guys have been doing it all year. "
Indeed, Cora looked like a genius. "[Holt has] "We have been swinging the bat for a while now," Cora said after the game. "We felt the matchup was good for him tonight, although he was 0-for-whatever coming into the game against Severino. He's been able to catch up with other fastballs, breaking balls, and pull it with power.
"He's a good player, but when healthy, he can help you out."
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