Red Sox’s Ceddanne Rafaela Impresses In Yankee Stadium Debut

It may not be the original building, but Yankee Stadium still marks a major spotlight for MLB players to shine. On Friday night, an emerging Red Sox player embraced the opportunity.

There are plenty of firsts this season for Ceddanne Rafaela as he navigates his first full season in the big leagues. Friday marked his first career game at Yankee Stadium. The Red Sox shortstop took full advantage.

Boston and New York entered extra innings after Masataka Yoshida dramatically tied the game with two outs in the ninth inning. Rafaela wasted no time making his impression in the tenth inning when he deposited a two-run home run over the wall in center field to give the Red Sox the 5-3 lead that Boston secured for a fifth-straight victory.

“He got a pitch over the heart of the plate and put a good swing on it,” Alex Cora told reporters, as seen on NESN’s postgame coverage.

“Felt amazing,” Rafaela told Jahmai Webster during NESN’s postgame coverage. “Felt amazing to help the team out. Great emotion. Great feeling.”

Rafaela leads all MLB rookies with 49 RBI as he continues to develop into a more consistent hitter for the Red Sox. It’s safe to say that the recently-extended young player turned in his biggest swing for Boston.