Max Fried pitched five innings in a stellar return from the injured list and Jasson Dominguez hit a tiebreaking RBI double in the seventh inning on Wednesday night as the New York Yankees recorded a 2-0 victory over the visiting Pittsburgh Pirates in Game 2 of a split doubleheader.

New York won for the seventh time in 10 games after allowing two runs in the 10th inning in a 5-3 Game 1 loss on Wednesday afternoon. The Yankees avoided getting swept at home in a doubleheader for the first time since May 22, 2022, against the Chicago White Sox.

After throwing just 52 pitches in his only rehab start, Fried was not fully stretched in his first major league start since May 13.

Fried struck out seven and walked one in his 57-pitch outing. The left-hander threw seven different pitches, averaged 96 mph with his four-seam fastball and retired the final 12 batters he faced.

Fried allowed a single to Nick Gonzales to start his outing but left fielder Cody Bellinger made a strong throw to second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. to stop him from stretching it into a double. The only other runner Fried allowed was a walk to rookie Esmerlyn Valdez to start the second.

The left-hander wound up with a no-decision because the Yankees did little against Pittsburgh starter Bubba Chandler, who allowed two hits in 6 1/3 innings. Chandler struck out five and walked one before the Yankees pieced together two runs against Brandon Eisert (2-2)

Chandler was lifted after retiring Paul Goldschmidt to start the seventh. Bellinger followed with a walk and raced home on Dominguez’s double to the left field corner.

On the next pitch, Anthony Volpe followed with a double to left for a 2-0 lead as Dominguez beat left fielder Bryan Reynolds’ throw.

After Fried’s outing ended, Angel Chivilli pitched a scoreless sixth and exited after an infield hit by Jared Triolo. Paul Blackburn (3-1) stranded two runners in the seventh and continued his emergence as a high-leverage reliever by tossing two innings.

Will Warren, who was scheduled to start before Tuesday’s game was rained out, put two on in the ninth before Tim Hill retired Ryan O’Hearn to secure his fifth career save and first since 2021.

–Field Level Media

Matt Freese, unbothered by the jeers of the fans in Columbus, Ohio, made three saves as New York City FC held on for a 2-1 victory over the Crew in the first post-World Cup match for both sides on Wednesday.

A Nico Fernandez penalty kick in the 28th and Agustin Ojeda’s score in the 70th minute helped NYCFC (6-6-4, 22 points) to a 2-0 lead and break a nine-match winless streak (six losses, three ties) in Columbus since April 29, 2017.

Freese lost a bid for his fourth shutout of the season in the third minute of second-half stoppage time when Daniel Gazdag converted a penalty that came after a handball by Thiago Martins.

The Crew (4-8-4, 16 points) have a win and a draw in their past six matches.

Freese, who started four of five matches in the World Cup for the U.S. squad, had little to do for much of the match but was booed by the fans every time he touched the ball. He had bungled a clearance which led to Belgium’s third goal in a 4-1 defeat in the round of 16.

He didn’t have to make a save until the 48th minute when he pushed aside a shot from the left side just outside the box by Taha Habroune.

Fernandez scored his team-high 11th goal after Ojeda was fouled at the top of the box by Max Arfsten in an inauspicious return from the World Cup for the Crew’s U.S. national team midfielder.

Arfsten’s rough outing continued in the 60th minute when his yellow card for a hard challenge on Fernandez resulted in a 25-yard free kick off the bar by Fernandez.

Ojeda doubled the score thanks to teammate Talles Magno stripping the ball from Rudy Camacho at the left flag, then dribbling along the end line before finding Ojeda in the middle of the box.

The Crew played their first match since leading scorer Diego Rossi (six goals) was transferred to Liga MX’s Monterrey in early July. The attack was listless in the first 45 minutes half with just two shot attempts.

Crew defender Steven Moreira, a starter in the World Cup for Cape Verde, came off the bench in the 64th minute.

NYCFC defender James Sands started in his season debut after returning to the club from an 18-month loan to Germany’s FC St. Pauli.

–Field Level Media

The New England Revolution played visitors Toronto FC to a scoreless draw Wednesday in Foxboro, Mass., as MLS played its first full slate of games since the World Cup.

Toronto (3-6-7, 16 points) and New England (8-5-2, 26 points) both failed to capitalize on key opportunities as the 10-point gap between them remained unchanged and Toronto remained outside the playoff picture.

Toronto’s Richie Laryea, back at his usual spot at fullback after playing for Canada at the World Cup, sent a low streaking cross immediately in front of goal only for Jules-Anthony Vilsaint to catch the ball on the wrong side of his boot in the 38th minute.

Carles Gil was quick to respond for the home side, rattling the crossbar on a powerful effort from outside the box. TFC goalkeeper Luka Gavran denied Peyton Miller at the far post off Gil’s curling free kick in the dying seconds of the first half.

Revolution defender Will Sands struck his own crossbar on a bungled clearing attempt in the 59th minute, but sprung up heroically to beat Deandre Kerr to the ball in the air after Josh Sargent kept it in play.

Perhaps with fixture congestion in mind, Sargent was kept on the bench until halftime, though Toronto’s record signing injected some much-needed energy into his team’s frontline. He headed a ball inches wide on a 76th-minute corner.

Canadian youth international Richard Chukwu made his MLS debut in Toronto’s backline and went 71 minutes before subbing off with a cramp. Djordje Mihailovic, who made his first league appearance since March last Thursday, was not in the visitors’ lineup.

TFC extended their winless streak to 11 in all competitions even as Gavran recorded his second consecutive clean sheet. Toronto has yet to score or concede in two games since returning from the World Cup break.

The result marked just the second time New England failed to capture three points at home this season. Goalkeeper Matt Turner collected his fourth clean sheet on the year.

–Field Level Media