MLB

Yankees’ Dellin Betances brings the triple-digit heat

Making the Yankees’ roster out of spring training was pretty good for Dellin Betances.

So was being named an All-Star for the first time.

But there was still one more thing on the right-hander’s list that he hadn’t gotten to this season: Hitting triple digits on the radar gun after topping out at 99 mph last season.

After getting there for the first time in the Yankees’ last homestand, Betances took it to another level in Saturday’s 6-4 win over the Red Sox at Fenway Park, reaching the number on three straight pitches as he struck out Mike Napoli to start the bottom of the eighth.

“It’s definitely exciting,” Betances said. “I talked to some of the guys that reached that mark and that was one of my goals this offseason.”

But he was quick to point out he was more pleased with the result.

“To me, getting the job done is what matters, especially after Texas,” said Betances, who struggled in his previous outing, Tuesday against the Rangers. “I’m just happy I got [Napoli] out. He was fouling everything off. I just tried to get the leadoff guy out and not walk him.”

It was just one of the highlights for Betances, who reminded everyone how dominant he can be.

Betances came in with runners on the corners in the seventh after another rough outing for Adam Warren. He got David Ortiz on a sacrifice fly to left and newly arrived Yoenis Cespedes to pop to Chase Headley at third, ending the inning with the Yankees still up by two runs. In the eighth, he fannedNapoli and got Daniel Nava and Xander Bogaerts to ground out.

Betances wasn’t alone in glancing at the board at Fenway.

“I usually check once in a while just to see how hard the pitcher is throwing so I know which way to shift,” Jacoby Ellsbury said. “With the way he was throwing, I couldn’t help look after just about every pitch.When I saw it, I was hoping for a swing and miss.”

Francisco Cervelli had an even better viewpointthan the center fielder.

“I saw 101 a couple of times,” the catcher said. “That means he’s fresh. He just needed a break.”

Betances hadn’t pitched in three days and then slipped off the mound earlier in Napoli’s at-bat. Cervelli said he didn’t even see that happen.

“I’m just trying to catch 101 [mph],” Cervelli said. “That’s where my focus is.”

And Betances said he won’t be distracted by his new feat of strength.

“Other people would talk trash because I couldn’t get there,” said Betances, singling out Michael Pineda, who did it with the Mariners. “More importantly, I feel good about throwing strikes. Strikes are better. But now I can say I hit that mark.”