Sports

Yankees officially have new cult hero

Ride the Luke Voit home run wave. Ride it with the same kind of smile Voit flashes when he rounds the bases.

Ride it as long as you can, Yankees. When stardom finds you in this city, go with the flow.

Keep the top button of your jersey unbuttoned. Let fans enjoy the video of one-armed, 135-pound bench presses. Do the Voit Skip on the home run trot out of the box. Smile and point to the dugout. Do a high-flying, Bash Brothers celebration when you cross home plate.

And for fun, do it twice in one game.

Voit continued his amazing Shane Spencer 1998 replay Wednesday night in the Yankees’ 10-1 beatdown of the Red Sox and David Price by lashing two Yankee Stadium-special home runs into the short porch in right field, once again keeping Boston (one win from clinching the AL East) from celebrating in the Bronx.





Voit has nine home runs in 93 at-bats as a Yankee after coming over in a trade from the Cardinals. All nine have been hit since Aug. 24, and only the Brewers’ Christian Yelich (10) has hit more in that span. In parts of two seasons with the Cardinals, Voit collected all of five home runs over 125 at-bats. Spencer blasted 10 home runs in 67 at-bats back in 1998.

Voit, 27, looks more like the young man down the street who drives a muscle car than a professional baseball player. Is he ever enjoying this ride.

“Fun night, man,’’ Voit said. “I’m playing the game of baseball with a great group of guys in an amazing city. I’m just being myself. I’m usually not the guy hitting all the home runs, this park helps me out a lot. I just had to go back to what I did in Triple-A and Double-A, because I put up numbers there.’’





Beating the Red Sox is fun, too, and the 43,297 fans responded with a “Luuuuke’’ chant.

“It doesn’t get better than that,’’ Voit said. “One of the guys in there said, ‘I’m jealous you get a Luke chant.’ Especially around the bases, my heart is racing. That’s why I bring all that enthusiasm. The fans got my back and they want to see that. And who doesn’t like home runs — that’s why guys come to the park.

“We don’t want [the Red Sox] to clinch here. They are our rival and we are going to try to do everything we can. We haven’t been our New York Yankees. … It’s scary how good this team is going to be and we are looking to do some damage in the playoffs.’’





Aaron Boone is enjoying all this too.

“I like when he hits a big homer and whatever antics he’s got going around the bases,’’ Boone said. “I like to see our guys react to him and try to imitate what he is doing. Buttons are flying off him.’’

Noted Voit: “I’ve always worn no undershirt and let the top button go, so let the chest hair hang, baby. Why not? It works, I guess.’’

Price surrendered three Yankee Stadium home runs as he continues to self-destruct in the Bronx. Against Voit, Price should have done a better job of reading the hitter.

Versus lefties, the right-handed-hitting Voit shoots for the short porch in right — and Price played right into his hands. Twice.





On the first, a solo shot in the fourth, Voit lifted a 93-mph outer-half fastball 341 feet into the seats. The second homer, a two-run shot in the Yankees’ four-run sixth inning, came on an 88-mph pitch, also on the outer half. Voit put that one into the front row a mere 343 feet from home plate.

“The ones to Voit, they were good pitches,” Boston manager Alex Cora said. “He’s a big guy. That’s what he does. He does damage against lefties.’’

Voit also singled twice, giving him a career-high four hits.

Baseball is a game of opportunity and Voit got his chance because Greg Bird struggled.

Let the chest hair hang, baby.





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