The Cubs had heard that the game might be canceled, so when the news came at 4 p.m. that the East River Park fields had drained sufficiently following Friday’s downpour, the team could only rally eight of its players to face the Yankees. And the intrepid players took to the field on a damp spring night, starting with a sharp line drive by Michael DePeri to the Yankees’ first baseman, Michael Bogdanos, who deftly caught the ball in the air. Theo Kaufman stepped up to the plate with a single, but subsequent strikeouts left him stranded at first. The Yankees were able to get on base with singles by Bogdanos, Ethan Wallis and Tyler Rohan, but also ended the first with no runs.
Jonah Weinstein started a two-out rally with a single in the second. Max Dell-Thibodeau drove him home with a homer to left field. DiPeri, Kaufman and Luca Romeo each followed with singles, bringing the score to 3-0.
Liam Clayton made an unassisted out at first for the Cubs. David Wong hit a one-bagger for the Yankees, but was stranded on first at the end of the 2nd inning. The Cubs’ William Smith hit a nice single in the third.
For the Yankees in the third, Marcus Chan and Bogdanos led off with singles. Wallis cranked a double, driving in both runners. Rohan followed with a single, while the Cubs’ Kaufman showed smart fielding and kept Wallis at second base. Luke Marable and Lampietti each hit R.B.I. singles, but when David Wong grounded towards Kaufman, the ball hit Marable as he tore to third, and the Yankees were only able to score 4.
The Cubs started off well in the fourth, with a single by DiPeri, but a Bogdanos-to-Rohan defensive combo stranded him at first. The Yankees answered with a lead-off triple by Alexander Monticciolo, followed by a hard-hit single by Chan (stopped nicely by Kaufman), and the Yankees first home run of the year by Bogdanos. Rohan, Marable, Lampietti, David Wong and Advay Sriram hit consecutive singles, ending the inning with the five runs allowed per inning.
Down 9-3, the Cubs came into the 5th inning swinging, but consistent pitching by the Yankees (two fly-outs to Bogdanos) held them at bay. The Yankees continued to crank in the runs, with singles by Monticciolo, Chan, Bogdanos, Wallis, Ariana Howard and Rohan. Marable closed the scoring with a two-R.B.I. double, bringing the score to 14-3.
Rohan continued his defensive streak by assisting in two of the last three outs of the game, and despite Kaufman’s single, the Cubs were scoreless in the 6th. As the fog rolled in and the sunset behind the grey clouds, the game ended at 14-3, Yankees.
