Jazz Chisholm Jr. and the Yankees got the last laugh on Thursday night after he was repeatedly booed in Kansas City, as the Bronx Bombers took down the Royals in four games to move into the ALCS.
Chisholm had claimed that the Royals ‘got lucky’ after the Yankees’ lost Game 2 at home, and the Kansas City fans didn’t forget that as they jeered him throughout Games 3 and 4.
But with a 3-1 win on Thursday to wrap up the series, those boos were silenced, and Chisholm’s teammates had a hilarious way of mocking the opposing fans afterwards.
As they dumped beer on his head in the locker room, Chisholm’s Yankees teammates sarcastically booed him as the Bahamian said ‘we love it’ with a huge smile on his face.
On Wednesday, he could be seen reveling in the boos from Royals fans during Game 3, and said afterwards, ‘I ain’t ever seen anybody boo a bum.’
Jazz Chisholm was sarcastically booed by his teammates as they sprayed him with champagne
He angered Royals fans earlier in the series by claiming they ‘got lucky’ in Game 2
The Yankees enjoyed a boozy locker room celebration after beating the Royals in four games
It is true that Chisholm is just 1-for-11 in the last three games, but we was nonetheless in great spirits after the Yankees moved onto the ALCS where they’ll face the Tigers or Guardians.
‘I’d go to war with these guys, any day,’ he told reporters on Thursday. ‘They introduce me like I’m the f***ing little brother they always wanted. And I feel like I’m the little brother they always wanted. So to be here right now, I know I didn’t produce much in the series, but these guys made me feel like I did the world.’
Chisholm has only been with the Yankees since July 27, when he was traded from the Marlins, but it’s clear he’s become a clubhouse favorite in that time.
‘He handled it well,’ Yankees manager Aaron Boone said of the booing he faced. ‘That’s good for the playoffs, to have a little bit of that. I don’t think he meant any disrespect by it at all. You know, it made for a little better environment.’
The Yankees and Chisholm had some well-earned celebrations in the locker room after the win, as they sprayed champagne all over the room with many of the players donning goggles to protect their eyes.
Yankees captain Aaron Judge, who struggled in the series, was seen taking a swig of champagne in one photo while the team also posed for a group photo on the field.
The last one to join the picture was star pitcher Gerrit Cole, who allowed just one earned run in seven innings on Thursday, while Gleyber Torres, Juan Soto and Giancarlo Stanton each supplied key hits in the win.
Aaron Judge took a big swig of champagne after the Yankees wrapped up the ALDS
The Yankees celebrate after beating the Royals Thursday night at Kauffman Stadium
After failing to reach the postseason a year ago, the Yankees advanced to the American League Championship Series for the second time in three seasons and for the fourth time since 2017.
Judge, who came in struggling in the postseason after making himself the favorite to win AL MVP in the regular season, hit a hard double in two at-bats, scored a run, walked twice and stole a base.
After grinding to a no-decision in the series opener, Cole (1-0) allowed a run and six hits to go with four strikeouts. He kept the Royals off the scoreboard through five innings and pitched out of a jam in the sixth.
New York’s bullpen continued to dominate with Clay Holmes taking the eighth and Luke Weaver finishing in the ninth for his third save of the series. Yankees relievers combined to allow zero runs in 15 2/3 innings in the series.
The Yankees posed for a team photo on the field after beating the Royals 4-1 on Thursday
The Yankees will now face the winner of the Tigers-Guardians series, which will be wrapped up on Saturday
The Yankees scored quickly against right-hander Michael Wacha who, like Cole, also started Game 1. Three pitches into the first inning, Soto lined an RBI single to right, scoring Torres after he had doubled, to give New York a 1-0 lead.
Wacha (0-1) kept the Yankees from adding more until two outs in the fifth, when Torres lined an RBI single to right, knocking in Alex Verdugo from third. Lucas Erceg then replaced Wacha to put out the rally.
Stanton, who hit the go-ahead home run late in Game 3, came through again with an RBI single in the sixth for 3-0 lead.
The Royals pushed across a run in the sixth when Vinnie Pasquantino hit an RBI double to score Witt with two outs, but strong Yankees defense thwarted KC’s best chance for a bigger inning.
New York won’t learn of its opponent in the ALCS until Saturday, when the Cleveland Guardians are scheduled to host the Detroit Tigers for Game 5 of that ALDS. The Guardians extended their series with a 5-4 victory against the Tigers on Thursday.
