NEW YORK (Interstat) — In a taut, back-and-forth American League Division Series battle defined by clutch hits and critical bullpen performances, the New York Yankees edged the Boston Red Sox 4-3 on Wednesday night to even the best-of-five playoff matchup.

A crowd of 47,993 at Yankee Stadium watched the Yankees rally in the bottom of the eighth inning, breaking a 3-3 tie on a two-out, go-ahead single by catcher Austin Wells that scored Jazz Chisholm Jr. and propelled New York to a pivotal victory. The series is now tied 1-1, setting up a crucial Game 3 in the Bronx on Thursday.

The game unfolded as a stark contrast to the statistical projections, which had forecast a high-scoring affair favoring the Yankees. Instead, it was a tense, defensive struggle where late-inning execution proved decisive.

New York struck first and fast against Boston starter Payton Tolle. After two quick outs in the first inning, Cody Bellinger sparked the rally with a single. Rookie first baseman Ben Rice then announced his presence on the postseason stage, launching a two-run homer to right field to give the Yankees an immediate 2-0 lead.

Boston methodically chipped away, capitalizing on a Yankees mistake to take the lead in the third. Facing Yankees ace Carlos Rodón, Jarren Duran and Ceddanne Rafaela led off with a single and a walk, respectively. Nick Sogard then laid down a sacrifice bunt, but Rodón’s throwing error loaded the bases with no outs.

Rodón showed his mettle by striking out Rob Refsnyder, but Trevor Story delivered the key hit Boston needed, lacing a two-run single to center field that scored both Duran and Rafaela. Sogard advanced to second on the play, but the rally was abruptly halted when Alex Bregman grounded into an inning-ending double play, leaving the game tied 2-2.

The Red Sox claimed their first lead in the sixth inning when Story connected for a solo home run off reliever Fernando Cruz, a towering fly ball to left-center field that put Boston ahead 3-2.

The Yankees answered immediately in the bottom of the fifth. After a two-out walk to Trent Grisham, Aaron Judge delivered an RBI single to left field, scoring Grisham to knot the game at 3-3. Judge’s hit came against Boston reliever Justin Slaten, who had taken over for Tolle.

The game remained deadlocked into the late innings, with both bullpens trading zeros. The tension peaked in the top of the seventh when the Red Sox threatened to break the tie against Cruz. Nate Eaton and Duran reached on a walk and a hit-by-pitch, respectively, putting two on with no outs. A failed bunt and a fly out brought Masataka Yoshida to the plate with two outs and the bases loaded after an infield single. Yankees manager summoned Devin Williams from the bullpen, and the right-hander induced a sharp fly out from the dangerous Trevor Story to end the inning and preserve the tie.

Williams, who earned the win and improved to 5-6, worked a perfect eighth inning, aided by a double play.

In the bottom of the eighth, Boston reliever Garrett Whitlock, who took the loss and fell to 7-4, retired the first two batters. But Chisholm Jr. worked a crucial two-out walk to keep the inning alive. Wells then stepped up and lined a single into right field, easily scoring the speedy Chisholm Jr. from second to give the Yankees a 4-3 lead. Anthony Volpe followed with a single and Ryan McMahon walked to load the bases, but Whitlock escaped further damage.

In the ninth, Yankees closer David Bednar took the mound looking for his 28th save. He was dominant, striking out Wilyer Abreu and Jarren Duran before getting Ceddanne Rafaela to fly out to right field, sealing the victory and sending the Yankee Stadium crowd into a frenzy.

The loss dropped Boston’s season record to 90-74, while the Yankees improved to 95-69. The two rivals will resume their playoff series Thursday, with the winner taking a commanding 2-1 series lead.