July 3, 2026

Yankees Snap 7-Game Skid Behind Ben Rice And Gerrit Cole

Yankees

Yankees Snap 7-Game Skid Behind Ben Rice And Gerrit Cole
AP Photo/Adam Hunger

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The Yankees finally stopped the bleeding, and it took Ben Rice, Trent Grisham, Gerrit Cole, and a bullpen finish that did not completely torture the fan base to get it done.

The New York Yankees beat the Minnesota Twins 5-2 at Yankee Stadium, and yes, that sentence feels weird after the garbage this team just put everybody through.

After 7 straight losses, the Yankees finally remembered they are allowed to win games. Not talk about urgency. Not say the right things after another ugly loss. Actually win the game.

They came into this one needing anything that looked like life. A big swing. A clean inning. A starter not falling apart. A bullpen not turning the eighth and ninth into a haunted house. For one night, they got enough of all of it.

Trent Grisham Came Back Swinging

Trent Grisham returned from a strained right hamstring and wasted no time making noise. First inning, leadoff spot, Yankees already down 1-0 after Kody Clemens homered off Gerrit Cole, and Grisham answered right back with a homer to right.

That was huge. Not just because it tied the game, but because this team needed somebody to punch back early. The Yankees have been playing like a team waiting around for somebody else to save them. Grisham stepped in and said, alright, enough of this.

He finished with 2 RBI, later adding a sacrifice fly in the seventh. That is exactly the kind of return they needed from him.

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Ben Rice Keeps Looking Like The Guy

Then came Ben Rice in the third inning.

After Grisham singled, Rice got a full-count fastball from rookie Mike Paredes and sent it into the right-field seats. Two-run homer. Yankees up 3-1. His 24th home run of the season.

And honestly, what else is there to say at this point? Rice has been one of the few bats on this team giving you real damage. Not empty at-bats. Not “almost had one.” Not media-approved soft contact. Real production.

When the Yankees needed a swing to stop this ugly slide from getting even uglier, Rice gave it to them.

Gerrit Cole Did His Job

Gerrit Cole was not perfect, but he gave the Yankees what they needed. Five innings, 2 earned runs, 5 hits, 7 strikeouts, no walks, and 88 pitches.

With Carlos Rodón going on the injured list because of left elbow inflammation, Cole giving them a stable start was not optional. They needed it badly. He gave up the homer to Clemens in the first and an RBI single to Victor Caratini in the fourth, but he never let the game get away.

That is what an ace is supposed to do when the team is drowning. Maybe it is not pretty every inning, but you keep the game under control.

The Yankees Actually Added Insurance

The seventh inning felt almost shocking because the Yankees did something fans have been begging for: they added on.

Ryan McMahon doubled. José Caballero singled him home. Austin Wells moved Caballero over with a sacrifice bunt. Then Grisham brought him in with a sacrifice fly.

Simple baseball. Productive baseball. Baseball that does not make you question your life choices.

That made it 5-2, and from there, the bullpen handled it. Brent Headrick and Paul Blackburn gave them clean innings. Fernando Cruz made things sweaty in the eighth with the bases loaded, because apparently nothing can ever just be normal, but he got out of it.

Then David Bednar came in for the ninth and struck out the side for his 17th save. No nonsense. No meltdown. Just three strikeouts and go home.

Now Do It Again

Look, nobody should be throwing a parade because the Yankees won one game after losing 7 straight. That is not the standard. This team is now 49-38, and the problems did not magically disappear because they beat Minnesota for one night.

The lineup still has holes. The offense still only had 6 hits. Rodón is now hurt. The pressure is still sitting right there.

But for one night, the Yankees stopped the slide.

Rice delivered. Grisham returned with impact. Cole held the line. Bednar slammed the door.

Now the Yankees have to prove this was not just one random night where the baseball gods felt bad for them. One win stops the losing streak. The next few games tell you if they actually woke up.

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Felix Pantaleón

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Born in Manhattan, New York, Felix Pantaleon is a Dominican-American digital content creator and the founder of NYYNEWS, one of the first and longest-running independent New York Yankees content creator platforms, active since 2005.

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