Let’s be real — the Yankees never actually had control of this game.
The Angels punched first. Oswald Peraza — yeah, that Oswald Peraza — came right back into Yankee Stadium and took Max Fried deep in the first inning. Just like that, the Yankees were chasing.
Another day. Another dinger. #ALLRISE pic.twitter.com/dgPw3Hm3lX
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) April 16, 2026
They responded, sure. Aaron Judge crushed another first-inning homer. Giancarlo Stanton gave them a lead in the third. For a couple innings, it felt like maybe they could wrestle control back.
But it never felt secure. Not with Mike Trout on the field. Not the way this series was going.
That baseball had a family, G 😳 pic.twitter.com/cuwUUC9K6M
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) April 16, 2026
This “They Always Win When Judge And Stanton Homer” Thing? Yeah… Not This Time
History says when Judge and Stanton both go deep, the Yankees win. It’s basically automatic. They came into this game 53-7 in those situations.
Make it 53-8.
Because this wasn’t a normal game. This was the Mike Trout series.
Five home runs in four games. At Yankee Stadium. Let that sink in.
He didn’t just beat the Yankees — he put on one of the best series performances you will ever see in this building. Homering again in the seventh, walking three times, controlling the pace of the game every single time he stepped in.
You cannot make this stuff up.
The Yankees Got The Lead — And Immediately Lost It
Stanton’s two-run shot in the third gave the Yankees a 3-2 lead. That should have been the turning point. That should have been where they settled in.
Instead, it lasted a blink.
The Angels kept grinding at-bats. Fried never really had command. And then the sixth inning showed up and flipped the entire game.
Peraza again. Double. Damage. Chaos.
Four runs. Lead gone. Momentum gone.
And from that point on, the Yankees were not coming back.
The Bullpen Didn’t Just Struggle — It Opened The Floodgates
This is where the real concern is starting to show.
Fried battled, but the bullpen turned a tight game into a blowout. Angel Chivilli served up Trout’s bomb in the seventh. Ryan Yarbrough tried to navigate the eighth, walked into a mess, and Jo Adell ended it with a grand slam.
Game over. No drama. No fight back.
Just another inning where everything snowballs and nobody stops it.
This Series Said A Lot — And None Of It Was Comfortable
Yeah, technically it’s a split.
But don’t let that fool you.
The Yankees got exposed in this series. The bullpen is shaky. The pitching finally gave up the long ball — a lot of it. And when things start to tilt, this team still has not shown it can slam the brakes.
another one for the history books 📖 pic.twitter.com/cqJNmznTd5
— Los Angeles Angels (@Angels) April 16, 2026
Meanwhile, Trout walked into the Bronx and reminded everyone exactly who he is.
Five homers. Historic territory. Complete control of the series.
Even Stanton said it — you have to acknowledge greatness.
And the Yankees? They just had to survive it.
Except on Thursday, they didn’t.
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