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Luke Weaver has been a revelation for the New York Yankees throughout the postseason so far. The veteran journeyman has arguably been the top closing pitcher of the playoffs so far, however, things did not go according to plan on Thursday night.
The New York Yankees called upon Luke Weaver with a 5-3 lead in the bottom of the ninth inning to close out the game. Unfortunately for Weaver, Cleveland Guardians slugger Jhonkensy Noel smashed a ball over the fence in left field, tying the game with his two-run home run.
The game-tying home run turned out to be a costly one as the Cleveland Guardians were able to pull off a victory in extra innings thanks to a walk-off home run by David Fry. Unsurprisingly, Weaver took the loss hard, saying that he needed to perform better for himself and for his team when they need him.
“I’ve just got to execute. I really felt like I let the team down there, let myself down. It’s baseball, things like that happen," Weaver said after the Game 3 loss.
Despite the difficult outing, Weaver has been excellent for the New York Yankees this postseason. It's unlikely that Aaron Boone will take him out of the closer role after surrending the two-run home run, however, it did push his postseason ERA to 3.24 over 8.1 innings of work. Weaver said:
"It feels a little devastating but at the end of the day you've gotta bounceback, we're still in a good position, I felt like there is some momentum there."
Weaver and the rest of the New York Yankees will look to get back on track on Friday night when their American League Championship Series continues at Progressive Field in Cleveland.
Luke Weaver made headlines earlier this week by calling himself a jungle cat on the mound
The 31-year-old has continually found himself in headlines thanks to his strong playoff performances. However, the journeyman also caught the attention of fans, as well as his bullpen coach Mike Harkey, after referring to himself as a jungle cat on the mound.
Harkey, who has a strong relationship with Luke Weaver, laughed when he heard of the comparison. Despite saying that Weaver has the heart of a lion, Harkey said that he is more like a baby tiger or baby lion. If Weaver can rediscover his form quickly, the Yankees should be alright moving forward.
