ANAHEIM — It was looking good for the Yankees halfway thru but the team unraveled from then on as New York squandered a chance to sweep the Angels, dropping the finale, 11-5.
The loss ends a six-game winning streak for the Bombers, who remain two games back of the AL East leading Rays.
Given a 4-0 lead entering the bottom half of the fifth, Masahiro Tanaka looked to continue his dominance over a team he has cruised by since he entered the league in 2014.
Instead, Tanaka was unable to locate his pitches in the inning, giving up a pair of two-run home runs to Tommy La Stella and Kole Calhoun, respectively.
Los Angeles then took the lead in the next frame, when Jonathan Holder allowed a two-run single that brought home two runs that were charged to Tanaka.
In the end, Tanaka was charged with six runs, five earned, in just 5.2 innings. Though he had two strikeouts, the one swing-and-miss he got from Angels’ batters was the lowest he’s had in a start, in recent years.
In the seventh, the nightmare continued for Aaron Boone as Stephen Tarpley and Joseph Harvey were unable to do the job. Not helped by some clumsy defense from the Yankees all-around, the five-run seventh blew the game open.
New York was looking good early on with a RBI-single from DJ LeMahieu opening the scoring in the third. The offensive momentum then continued in the fourth with Gio Urshela mashing his first homer as a Yankee.
First for Ursh. pic.twitter.com/hpOSALuh9b
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) April 26, 2019
While the Bombers added two more in the fifth, the team had a golden opportunity to blow the game open. With the bases loaded and no outs, Mike Tauchman fought to stay alive but eventually struckout. Though Gleyber Torres followed with a single, Mike Ford softly popped out before Urshela lined out to end the threat.
The team had yet another bases loaded opportunity in the eighth, with two outs and Gary Sanchez at the plate. The Yankee catcher, however, continued his struggles at the plate, since being activated from the IL, as he flied out to end the inning.
Luke Voit was one of the lone Yankee bright spots on offense, as his three hits pushed his on-base streak to an impressive 36 games.
The Yankees will now take a trip up north to face the Giants, with James Paxton and Madison Bumgarner facing off in tomorrow’s series opener.
Current Yankees Record: 14-11
