A grand slam is the most expensive swing in baseball, and Ben Rice cashed one against the Red Sox late in Game 1 of the AL Wild Card Series. He finished with six RBIs. That is one man doing the work of a small lineup, against the team in the other dugout that Yankees fans would most like to see suffer.

Before Rice got there, Cam Schlittler had already handled the Red Sox. ESPN calls it another playoff gem, and "another" is doing the work. Schlittler has turned the postseason into a recurring engagement. The playoffs keep booking him and he keeps showing up on time.

The format explains why the evening felt like a cliff edge. A Wild Card Series is best of three. Win the opener and the other side is already playing an elimination game in Game 2. Boston has to win twice against a team that has just shown it can score in bunches.

Giancarlo Stanton is available for it too, though only as a pinch hitter. He confirmed as much after being named to the roster. Most teams would call that a lot of injury news. The Yankees call it a bench.

Out west, the Dodgers watched all this from the comfort of a bye. The top seeds in each league skip this round, and Los Angeles has had a lengthy break before the postseason starts. ESPN reports they expect a healthier Shohei Ohtani at the top of the lineup for the NLDS. Ohtani's contract, $700 million with most of it deferred, was built to pay out over a decade. The Dodgers now get to spend part of October watching it rest.

Rest is the quiet luxury of the format. The Yankees will be at it again in Game 2, and the Dodgers will be on the couch.