After the Yankees’ 4-2 loss to the Dodgers in Game 2 of the World Series, there wasn’t much for Yankees fans to be happy about. The Yankees only had one hit and one run, both thanks to Juan Soto, until the start of the ninth inning when the Yankees tried to stage a comeback but failed.

Starting pitcher Carlos Rodón was no better than the offense, lasting just 3.1 innings and allowing six hits, including three home runs, and a total of four earned runs. Although Rodón and the starting lineup had some issues (except Soto), Yankees fans can take some solace in the fact that the bullpen was nearly empty, allowing no earned runs and just two hits in 4.2 innings.

The evening in the bullpen started early when Aaron Boone pulled Rodón with just one out in the bottom of the fourth quarter and replaced him with Jake Cousins. Cousins ​​was the losing pitcher in Game 1 when he grounded out in the tenth inning. In Game 1, he lasted just one out, striking out Gavin Lux for the game-winning run and giving up a single to Tommy Edman for the winning run. Things weren’t looking good when Cousins ​​entered Game 2 and allowed a double to Will Smith, the first batter he faced. Luckily, Cousins ​​managed to strike out both Miguel Rojas and Shohei Ohtani to end the inning.

Boone let Cousins ​​in in the bottom of the fifth, and he was retired after Teoscar Hernández hit a single to right with one out. Tim Hill took on Freddie Freeman. Many of us continue to lament the fact that Nestor Cortes was selected in place of Hill, who was also in the bullpen ready to face Ohtani and later Freeman in the bottom of the 10th inning in Game 1.

Hill looked good against Freeman in last night’s game, getting Freeman to get the better of Anthony Volpe. He then struck out Edman to end the inning, leaving Hernández stranded at first. The Dodgers’ lineup didn’t seem to have much of an answer for him – a good but bittersweet outcome.

After Hill retired the first two batters in the bottom of the sixth, he was replaced by Clay Holmes. In 1.1 frames, Holmes struck out two batters, Rojas and Mookie Betts. The only mistake he made was walking Ohtani with one out in the bottom of the seventh. Luckily for Holmes, Austin Wells caught Ohtani stealing second to end the inning. Unfortunately for Ohtani, he suffered a partial dislocation of his left shoulder while sliding into second place.

Boone’s final call to the bullpen of Game 2 came in the bottom of the eighth inning for Mark Leiter Jr. To my surprise, Leiter pitched a scoreless 1-2-3 inning, facing some dangerous Dodgers hitters. He got Hernández to go to the middle and take Freeman and Edman to the ground.

Even though the Yankees still lost this game, they were still in it until the end, and that’s thanks to the strong performance of the bullpen. It was particularly encouraging to see Holmes and Leiter turn in dominant performances against a challenging Dodgers lineup. It took Holmes, in particular, a somewhat wild Game 1 and back-to-back shaky games to close out the ALCS. Nonetheless, the numbers show he had a solid postseason overall – the flawless ALDS helped them get past the Royals, and he was strong early against Cleveland and then again tonight. In 9.2 innings pitched, he gave up seven hits and just three earned runs. Even though the closer role didn’t suit him, he generally seemed to find his groove in the seventh and eighth innings.

Leiter probably wouldn’t be on the team right now if Ian Hamilton hadn’t been injured in Game 3 of the ALCS. I don’t think many Yankees fans had a lot of confidence in him when he was added to this roster, but he performed well. He has only given up one run in his three games played.

Here’s hoping the bullpen continues to make an impact in the rest of this series. However, the Yankees have no hope of winning this series if their offense continues to falter.