The Boston Red Sox didn’t hang their heads after Aaron Judge pulverized a baseball to give the New York Yankees the lead with a three-run home run in the top of the seventh inning Friday night.
But the Red Sox needed some belief they could overcome a sudden three-run deficit against their archrival at Fenway Park.
And Ceddanne Rafaela provided just that for the Red Sox.
Rafaela got the Red Sox rally kick-started by hitting a key two-run home run in the bottom of the seventh inning to cut the deficit to a single run. The momentum carried over for the Red Sox an inning later when they scored three more times en route to a thrilling 9-7 win.
Rafaela’s round-tripper didn’t carry as far as Judge’s gargantuan 470-foot blast, but it certainly was a tape-measure shot with it traveling 398 feet over the Green Monster. And it had the same type of impact.
“It’s special to help the team,” Rafaela told reporters. “As a player, that’s what you want to do every day I think. It was a special moment to help the team right there.”
Coming up clutch in big moments is nothing new for the Red Sox rookie. He crushed a go-ahead homer in extra innings against New York earlier this month at Yankee Stadium.
He’s turned into a Yankees killer in short order. Rafaela is batting .364 with five home runs and nine RBIs in 11 career games against New York, according to MassLive’s Christopher Smith.
“He’s just a kid,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora told reporters. “He’s 23 and he’s learning on the job. And so far, it’s been outstanding.. He likes playing in the big moments. He likes playing against them, against the Phillies. I was joking with him, ‘We have to like playing against the Rockies in Colorado, too.’ You have to be ready every day and he understands that.”
Rafaela also took a run away from the Yankees in the contest. He made a strong defensive play in the top of the sixth inning at shortstop when he cut down Austin Wells at the plate for the second out of the frame to preserve a one-run lead at the time.
“For a rookie to be able to play good defense in center, good defense at shortstop and come in in big moments, it’s been fun to watch,” Cora said.
Rafaela certainly enjoyed those moments when he stepped up for his team. What made it better was to hear the roar of the home crowd after coming up with the timely plays.
“It’s awesome,” Rafaela said. “And it’s awesome to do it here at Fenway.”
