Ben Rice Hits Two Homers, Drives In Six as Yankees Shut Out Red Sox
Ben Rice hit two homers and drove in six as the Yankees shut out the Red Sox 9-0 behind 10 strikeouts from Cam Schlittler.
World Baseball News Editorial Team , 2 min read 
Ben Rice hit two home runs and drove in six runs while Cam Schlittler struck out 10 over 6 1/3 scoreless innings, carrying the New York Yankees to a 9-0 victory over the Boston Red Sox in Game 1 of their American League Wild Card Series on Tuesday night at Yankee Stadium.
The win gave New York a 1-0 lead in the best-of-three series and moved the Yankees within one victory of a place in the AL Division Series. It also showed that a lineup missing injured captain Aaron Judge still has enough power to change a postseason game quickly.
Rice turns a tight game into a rout
Boston rookie Payton Tolle kept the game close for most of his start. Austin Wells opened the scoring with an RBI single in the second inning, and Tolle limited New York to one run over 4 2/3 innings before departing.
Rice immediately attacked the Red Sox bullpen. He homered off Erik Miller in the fifth, then added an RBI single in the seventh as the Yankees pushed their lead to 4-0.
The decisive swing came in a five-run eighth. After Wells delivered a sacrifice fly, Rice drove a grand slam to right-center field off Brayan Bello, turning the opener into a 9-0 rout. The designated hitter finished 4-for-5 with two homers, six RBIs and two runs scored.
Schlittler shuts down Boston again
Schlittler allowed only two hits and one walk across 6 1/3 innings. The right-hander struck out 10 and did not let Boston advance a runner beyond second base during his outing.
Paul Blackburn followed with 1 2/3 scoreless innings before John Schreiber completed the shutout. Boston managed only three hits in all and never produced a serious rally.
The performance continued Schlittler’s dominance of his hometown team. The Massachusetts native entered the postseason after going 2-1 with a 0.74 ERA in four regular-season starts against Boston in 2026. He had also beaten the Red Sox with eight scoreless innings and 12 strikeouts in the deciding game of the 2025 Wild Card Series.
Yankees one win from advancing
New York will send left-hander Max Fried to the mound in Game 2 on Wednesday. Boston is scheduled to counter with Sonny Gray and must win to extend the series to a deciding third game.
For the Yankees, the opening-night formula was emphatic: elite pitching from Schlittler, relentless pressure late and a historic six-RBI night from Rice.
