Ben Rice's grand slam in the eighth inning rocketed into the Yankees bullpen in right-center field, where it struck a bullpen catcher directly on his helmet without the catcher flinching. The moment capped a dominant performance by Rice, who finished 4-for-5 with two home runs and six RBIs in the Yankees' decisive 9-0 victory.
Rice's six RBIs in a single postseason game made him the fifth Yankees player to accomplish the feat in playoff history, joining Robinson Canó, Hideki Matsui, Bernie Williams, and Bobby Richardson. His grand slam was the 16th hit by a Yankee in postseason play.
The Yankees struck first with a 1-0 lead in the second inning, doubled it in the fifth, and added two more runs in the seventh before Rice's eight-inning explosion sealed the victory. Starting pitcher Cam Schlittler delivered a dominant performance, allowing just two hits and one walk while striking out 10 hitters over 6⅓ scoreless innings. Rice credited consistency for his success, maintaining the same batting cage routine and breakfast of scrambled eggs and avocado toast that served him throughout the regular season. "All the consistency that you had in the regular season, you've just got to carry it right over into the postseason," Rice said.
The Red Sox face elimination in the best-of-three series as they prepare to face Max Fried on Wednesday night.