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Yankees’ Anthony Rizzo is the hero in the decisive game and sets the bar very high for the postseason
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Yankees’ Anthony Rizzo is the hero in the decisive game and sets the bar very high for the postseason

LOS ANGELES — Anthony Rizzo hasn’t been feeling well at bat for two weeks, and the Yankees first baseman looked like he was, hitting .128 in 12 games through Tuesday without a single RBI.

Before Wednesday night’s game, Rizzo made a few changes and his slump was over…at least for one night.

Great timing.

Rizzo was the star of the Yankees’ decisive game, scoring both runs in a 2-1 victory over the Mariners and scoring the tiebreaker with a double in the 10th inning.

“I felt like I made some good adjustments in the cage and that I was in a good position. Now it’s just a matter of maintaining that,” said Rizzo, who has a .219 batting average with eight home runs, 33 RBIs and an OPS of .615 in 85 games this season.

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Restoring glory

If Rizzo were to be a force again for the rest of the regular season and postseason, it would make their top-heavy Juan Soto/Aaron Judge lineup even better.

His expectations for October are high.

Very high.

Rizzo believes the Yankees have everything they need to win the World Series, and he knows what it takes, having played on the Cubs’ championship team in 2016.

“We do,” Rizzo said. “I really believe that. I think every team in the postseason will believe that, but we have offense, we have defense and we have pitching.”

“I think as the playoffs have shown the last few years, it’s all about which team gets going. And I feel like we’ve got the water boiling and got going and feel really good about what we’re going to do.”

Rizzo sees some similarities between this Yankees club and the 2016 Cubs.

“It’s easy for me to say yes, but that’s the first step,” he said. “When you pop champagne, hopefully there’s one more before the season ends and then three more during the postseason. That’s how you get closer and closer as a group and come together. That’s all you want.”

Rizzo was as happy as any other Yankee about his playoff spot. He hated missing out on his nightmare 2023, which was ruined by a concussion, despite which he tried to play for a few months with little success.

There have been more failures this season: He missed 62 games because of a broken forearm, but Rizzo contributed early as the Yankees got off to a great start, and he helped them to the playoff finish line on Wednesday after a slow start following his return from the injured list on Sept. 1.

“My year has definitely been unusual, but I’m learning and growing and the team has been really good, battle-tested through all the ups and downs,” Rizzo said. “We were really good in the beginning, not so good in some spots. I just feel like we’ve been coming together for a while now and building a lot of momentum.”

The Yankees entered Thursday with six wins in their last seven games, an AL record of 89-63 and a five-game lead in the AL East over the Orioles with 10 games remaining.

He believes the Yankees are peaking at the right time.

“We’re healthy, our starters are in good shape, which is always the most important thing for us, and our bullpen looks really good,” Rizzo said. “The formula is definitely right.”

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Randy Miller can be reached at [email protected].

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