KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The final out came at 12:22 a.m. local time, which is probably long after you went to bed, long after most of the folks who had populated Kauffman Stadium five hours earlier had headed home. Chasen Shreve delivered and Salvador Perez hammered one right at Jacoby Ellsbury, and loaded bases were soon left stranded and Yankees players were soon left delighted.
The Yankees had to earn this one, every ounce of it.