Level 1 — Absolute Beginner
The New York Yankees play the Boston Red Sox in the playoffs. On Tuesday night, the Yankees win 9 to 0.
Cam Schlittler pitches for the Yankees. He strikes out 10 batters. Boston does not score a run.
Ben Rice hits two home runs. One of them is a grand slam. He drives in six runs.
The series is the best of three games. The Yankees need one more win. Game 2 is on Wednesday night.
- playoffs
- Games after the season to find the champion.
- pitcher
- The player who throws the ball to the batter.
- strike out
- To get a batter out with three strikes.
- run
- A point in baseball.
- home run
- A hit that goes over the fence. The batter can run all the way around.
- grand slam
- A home run when all three bases have runners.
- series
- A group of games between two teams.
- win
- To finish the game with more points.
Level 2 — Elementary
The New York Yankees crushed the Boston Red Sox 9 to 0 on Tuesday in the first game of the American League Wild Card Series. The series is the best of three games, so the Yankees now need just one more win to move on.
Starting pitcher Cam Schlittler was excellent. He struck out 10 batters in 6 and one third innings and did not allow a single run. Boston never found a way to score.
First baseman Ben Rice was the hero at the plate. He hit two home runs, including a grand slam in the eighth inning that landed in the bullpen in center field. He finished the night with six runs batted in.
Another game ended the same way. The San Diego Padres beat the Chicago Cubs 8 to 0. The Yankees also started five homegrown position players and a homegrown pitcher, which means they all came up through the team's own system. Game 2 is on Wednesday night.
- inning
- One part of a baseball game. There are nine.
- allow
- To let something happen.
- first baseman
- The player who guards the first base.
- plate
- The place where the batter stands to hit.
- bullpen
- The area where pitchers warm up, beyond the outfield fence.
- runs batted in
- The number of runs a batter helps score with his hits.
- homegrown
- Raised and trained by the team itself.
- hero
- A person who does something great.
Level 3 — Intermediate
The New York Yankees routed the Boston Red Sox 9 to 0 on Tuesday night in Game 1 of the American League Wild Card Series, taking a firm grip on a best of three series that they can now finish with one more victory.
Right handed starter Cam Schlittler set the tone. He struck out 10 batters over 6 and one third scoreless innings, giving Boston no room to breathe. First baseman Ben Rice supplied the offense, launching a 96.8 mph sinker for his second career postseason home run and later hitting a grand slam into the center field bullpen in the eighth inning. He drove in six runs in all.
There was a storyline beyond the scoreboard. The Yankees started five homegrown position players and a homegrown starting pitcher, a sign of how much the club now leans on talent developed in its own system. Their rival, by contrast, never generated a real threat.
It was a lopsided evening across the league. The San Diego Padres shut out the Chicago Cubs 8 to 0, while Atlanta beat Philadelphia 5 to 3 and the White Sox beat Houston 6 to 3. Game 2 between the Yankees and Red Sox was scheduled for Wednesday at 8 p.m.
- rout
- To defeat someone very easily.
- grip
- Firm control over a situation.
- sinker
- A pitch that drops as it reaches the batter.
- postseason
- The games played after the regular season.
- storyline
- The main plot or theme of a series of events.
- lopsided
- With one side much stronger than the other.
- shut out
- To stop the other team from scoring at all.
- scoreboard
- A board that shows the points in a game.
Level 4 — Advanced
The New York Yankees dismantled the Boston Red Sox 9 to 0 on Tuesday night in Game 1 of the American League Wild Card Series, seizing a commanding position in a best of three format in which one more win sends them onward.
Cam Schlittler dictated the terms. The right hander struck out 10 over 6 and one third scoreless innings, and Boston never established a sustained threat. Ben Rice then turned a comfortable lead into a rout: he drove a 96.8 mph sinker out for his second career postseason home run and, in the eighth, sent a grand slam into the center field bullpen, finishing with six runs batted in.
The result also carried a quiet organisational message. The Yankees started five homegrown position players and a homegrown starting pitcher, a rebuke to the notion that the franchise simply purchases its success. In a rivalry that thrives on mutual antagonism, the scoreline was as emphatic a statement as either side could have asked for, or feared.
Elsewhere the opening night was similarly one sided. San Diego blanked the Chicago Cubs 8 to 0, Atlanta edged Philadelphia 5 to 3, and the White Sox beat Houston 6 to 3. Attention turned immediately to Game 2, scheduled for Wednesday at 8 p.m., when Boston must win to keep its season alive.
- dismantle
- To take apart or defeat completely.
- commanding
- Strong and giving a clear advantage.
- dictate the terms
- To control how something happens.
- sustained
- Continuing for a long time without weakening.
- organisational
- Relating to how a group or club is run.
- rebuke
- A sharp criticism or a correction of an idea.
- antagonism
- Active dislike or opposition.
- emphatic
- Strong and clear.
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