Bader, Torres homer, Yankees sweep Reds as Boone, Bell ejected

CINCINNATI — The New York Yankees headed back home after a 6-1 trip, completing a three-game sweep with a 4-1 win over the Cincinnati Reds following a contentious series in Toronto.

“I think we learned a lot about ourselves this road trip,” Harrison Bader said after his go-ahead, two-run homer sparked a comeback in Sunday’s series finale against the Reds. “If we didn’t already know it prior to having stuff go a little sideways, have some high energy that was kind of away from the game of baseball, we learned it now.”

Gleyber Torres also homered as the Yankees extended a winning streak to four for the first time this season. The series against the Reds was relatively calm after a trip to Toronto that included allegations of sign stealing, Domingo Germán’s ejection for sticky substances and testy exchanges.

Luis Severino returned from a strained lat muscle that had sidelined him since spring training and allowed one run and four hits in 4 2/3 innings with five strikeouts and one walk. He threw 54 of 75 pitches for strikes and averaged 96.7 mph with 44 fastballs.

“I was finding the zone. Changeup was really good,” Severino said. “Got some swings on the breaking ball.”

Yankees manager Aaron Boone was ejected in the first inning and Reds manager David Bell in the eighth.

New York (29-20), which gave slugger Aaron Judge the day off, has won six of seven and 14 of 19, improving to a season-high nine games over .500.

Cincinnati has lost six of seven, dropping into last place in the NL Central.

In a game that started at 11:37 a.m., Severino opened with a four-pitch walk to Jonathan India and Spencer Speer hit a two-out fly down the right-field line that Jake Bauers nearly caught but allowed to bounce off his glove.

The ball was ruled foul by first base umpire Nestor Ceja but the call was overturned in a video review and India was allowed to score. Boone, angry because India slowed down between third and home, came out to argue and was ejected by plate umpire Emil Jimenez. Boone was ejected for the third time this season and 29th in his managerial career.

“I was just at first trying to get an explanation of why and they just say you can’t argue that,” Boone said. “I shouldn’t have gotten kicked out there because, in the end, I think it was probably right thing.”

Bell was tossed by Jimenez in the eighth for arguing the umpire’s failure to call a quick pitch on Wandy Peralta to Luke Maile. Bell’s ejection was his second of the series, third this season and 23rd of his career.

“I wasn’t able to get an explanation,” Bell said.

Albert Abreu (2-1) followed Severino and got four straight outs. Jimmy Cordero pitched a perfect seventh and Peralta a 1-2-3 eighth.

Cincinnati loaded the bases in the ninth against Clay Holmes on two hits and walk before Will Benson hit a game-ending comebacker. Holmes got his fifth save in seven chances, his first save since April 12.

New York’s relivers pitched 14 2/3 scoreless innings in the series and leads the major leagues with a 2.87 bullpen ERA.

“We’ve got some guys back, but we have been beat up,” Boone said after the Yankees completed a stretch of 33 games in 34 days.

Hunter Greene (0-4) remained winless in 10 starts this season and has allowed eight home runs. He gave up four runs, four hits and three walks in a season-high seven innings and matched his season high with 10 strikeouts.

Bader put the Yankees ahead with a two-run homer in the fifth with a drive over the left-field wall for his fourth homer, Torres added an opposite-field drive to right on a fastball in the sixth. Anthony Volpe added an RBI single in the seventh.

“Bader hit a changeup. Everyone knows I’m working on it but still had a lot of success with it in a lot of situations,.” Greene said.

ROAD WOES

Bauers went 0 for 2 with a walk and is 1 for 23 on the road. He is 7 for 17 at Yankee Stadium.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Reds: RHP Fernando Cruz (right shoulder strain) was sent to Triple-A Louisville on a rehab assignment on Sunday. He has games scheduled Monday, Wednesday and Friday. … INF Joey Votto (left shoulder, biceps surgery) was scheduled to take batting practice Sunday. … OF TJ Friedl (left oblique soreness) could be activated as early as Tuesday.

UP NEXT

Yankees: RHP Gerrit Cole (5-0, 2.01) starts Tuesday’s homestand opener against Baltimore.

Reds: LHP Brandon Williamson (0-0, 1.59) starts Monday’s series opener against St. Louis and LHP Jordan Montgomery (2-6, 4.21). Williamson didn’t get a decision on May 16 at Colorado in his big league debut, allowing one run and two hits in 5 2/3 innings.

ARLINGTON, Texas — The Texas Rangers signed Jacob deGrom to a $185 million, five-year deal in free agency last winter hoping the two-time NL Cy Young Award winner could help them get back to the playoffs for the first time since 2016 and make a push toward winning a World Series.

They also knew the risks, with the pitcher coming off two injury-plagued seasons with the New York Mets.

Even with deGrom sidelined since late April, the AL West-leading Rangers are off to the best start in franchise history – but now will be without their prized acquisition until at least next year. The team said Tuesday that deGrom will have season-ending surgery next week to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow.

“We’ve got a special group here and to not be able to be out there and help them win, that stinks,” deGrom said, pausing several times with tears in his eyes. “Wanting to be out there and helping the team, it’s a disappointment.”

General manager Chris Young said Tuesday the decision on surgery came after an MRI on deGrom’s ailing right elbow, but the extent of what is required might not be determined until the operation is performed next week.

Tommy John surgery, in which the damaged ligament is replaced, is often needed to fix a torn UCL, but Young and the Rangers didn’t go as far as saying the pitcher would have that particular procedure. After being drafted by the New York Mets in 2010, deGrom made six starts in the minors that summer before needing Tommy John surgery and missing all of 2011, three years before his big league debut.

DeGrom last pitched April 28 against the New York Yankees, when he exited early because of injury concerns for the second time in a span of three starts. The announcement about surgery came a day after deGrom was transferred to the 60-day injured list.

Young said the latest MRI showed more inflammation and significant structural damage in the ligament that wasn’t there on the scan after deGrom left the game against the Yankees.

“The results of that MRI show that we have not made progress. And in fact, we’ve identified some damage to the ligament,” Young said. “It’s obviously a tough blow for Jacob, for certainly the Rangers. But we do feel this is what is right for Jacob in his career. We’re confident he’ll make a full recovery.”

Young and deGrom, who turns 35 later this month, said the goal is for the pitcher to return near the end of next season. Both said they were glad to have clarity on what was wrong with the elbow.

Texas won all six games started by deGrom (2-0), but the right-hander threw only 30 1/3 innings. He has a 2.67 ERA with 45 strikeouts and four walks. He threw 3 2/3 scoreless innings against the Yankees in his last start before leaving because of discomfort in his arm.

The Rangers went into Tuesday night’s game against St. Louis with a 39-20 record, the first time they were 19 games over .500 since the end of 2016, their last winning season.

Before going home to Florida over the weekend for the birth of his third child, deGrom threw his fifth bullpen last Wednesday in Detroit.

“I’d have days where I’d feel really good, days where I didn’t feel great. So I was kind of riding a roller coaster there for a little bit,” deGrom said. “They said originally there, we just saw some inflammation. … Getting an MRI right after you pitch, I feel like anybody would have inflammation. So, you know, I was hoping that that would get out of there and I would be fine. But it just didn’t work out that way.”

DeGrom spent his first nine big league seasons with the Mets, but was limited by injuries to 156 1/3 innings over 26 starts during his last two years in New York.

He had a career-low 1.08 ERA over 92 innings in 2021 before missing the final three months of the season with right forearm tightness and a sprained elbow.

The four-time All-Star didn’t make his first big league start last year until Aug. 2 after being shut down late in spring training because of a stress reaction in his right scapula.

His latest injury almost surely will trigger Texas’ conditional option on deGrom’s contract for 2028.

The option takes effect if deGrom has Tommy John surgery on his right elbow from 2023-26 or has any right elbow or shoulder injury that causes him to be on the IL for any period of 130 consecutive days during any season or 186 days in a row during any service period.

The conditional option would be for $20 million, $30 million or $37 million, depending on deGrom’s performance during the contract and health following the 2027 season.

“I feel bad for Jake. If I know Jake, he’ll have the surgery and come back and finish his career strong,” second-year Mets manager Buck Showalter said. “I know how much it means to him. He enjoys pitching. It’s certainly sad news for all of us.”