The most memorable swings of the Yankees’ wild-card triumph belonged to Ben Rice, Luis García and Cody Bellinger, whose home runs changed games. 

But the Yankees offense tormented the Red Sox’s pitching staff with lengthy, quality at-bats, timely hitting, simply making contact when contact was required and plenty of speed that Yankees teams of recent vintage did not have. 

It was just two games. But they were two games that provided a blueprint for how the attack, particularly if it continues to lack the power of Aaron Judge, operates at its best. 

“I told those guys,” manager Aaron Boone said after the series-clinching Game 2 victory in The Bronx, “ ‘We play like that, we have a chance to beat anybody.’ ” 

In the two games, the Yankees went 9-for-20 with runners in scoring position and struck out just 14 times. A team that in the past has waited for the knockout blow instead scratched out whatever it could, perhaps best exemplified by Wednesday’s sixth inning. 

Against Garrett Crochet, Spencer Jones looked overwhelmed in chasing a strike-three sweeper in the dirt — but then showed off rare speed in reaching first base on a wild pitch that did not get that far away from Adley Rutschman. 

New York Yankees’ Trent Grisham bunts during the sixth inning against the Boston Red Sox in Game 2 of baseball’s American League Wild Card Series, Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2026, in New York. AP Photo/Frank Franklin II

Jones then stole second, advanced to third when the throw trickled into center field, and scored on the next pitch because George Lombard Jr., who just needed to put the bat on the ball, singled for a two-run edge. 

After a Jazz Chisholm Jr. single that put runners on first and second, Trent Grisham — who had zero sacrifice bunts and zero bunt singles during the regular season — bunted nicely to third base and beat out a poor throw from Caleb Durbin. 

With the bases loaded, none out and Garrett Whitlock in the game, the Yankees used more small ball to gain separation. Austin Wells lifted a sacrifice fly that scored a run. Ryan McMahon, who earlier in the at-bat attempted a safety squeeze, only sent a Whitlock changeup 1 foot in the air, but the soft chopper to third base scored another. 

And two batters later, Bellinger poked a homer just deep enough to right to remind they can play big ball, too. 

“I thought we did a lot of good things offensively,” Boone said, “whether it was obviously a couple big long balls, Spencer legs out a strikeout to start the big inning, the stolen base comes into play, we put some balls in play, a couple of really well-computed bunt situations.” 

Among those to make his postseason debut Wednesday was Brent Headrick, who retired the only batter he faced. 

David Bednar, who tossed a scoreless ninth inning, owns a 1.29 ERA (seven innings, one earned run) with 10 strikeouts in six career playoff games. 

The Yankees are expected to have a workout day Friday in St. Petersburg, Fla. 

The Yankees outrighted righty Alexander Cornielle, who had been designated for assignment Tuesday, off the major league roster and onto the roster of the FCL Yankees.