BOSTON, Mass. — Before you start reading this, you might want to reconsider and go have yourself a #HotGirlSummer. No? OK, you’ve been warned. It was a pathetic showing this weekend as the New York Yankees were swept once again by the rival Boston Red Sox. Poor roster construction by general manager Brian Cashman. Deer in the headlights manager Aaron Boone at a loss for words. Players not executing.
The Yankees now reside behind the Seattle Mariners in the American League Wild Card standings in case I had to paint you a bigger picture.
I don’t understand how some of these guys are allowed to fly back to New York on Monday but then again Hal Steinbrenner is probably hanging out on a yacht somewhere while you continue to be miserable watching this dysfunctional baseball team.
GAME 1
This was a pretty messy 5-3 Yankees loss. Playing from behind early didn’t help but there were plenty of opportunities that also went by the boards. At least we learned Jacoby Ellsbury is still alive, so, good for him!
D’OH MINGO GERMAN
He can’t pitch. He can’t field his position. Domingo German was all out of sorts. During the first frame, German allowed a two-run double to center by Xander Bogaerts and an RBI double to left by Hunter Renfroe to make it 3-0.
After the Yankees rallied to tie it, aided by a Bogaerts error, on a Clint Frazier walk and a two-run single to right by DJ LeMahieu off Martin Perez, the lead proved to be short-lived.
In the third inning, German walked J.D. Martinez, uncorked a wild pitch enabling him to advance to second base. With one down, a German fielding error allowed Rafael Devers to reach and moved Martinez to third. As a result, Renfroe lifted a sac fly to center as the Bosox regained the lead.
BAD SEND
New York had an opportunity to square the game at four in the fourth. However, after a Gio Urshela double to left, Phil Nevin decided to send the Yankee third baseman home on a Miguel Andujar single to right and Renfroe cut down Urshela by about 15 feet for the out at the dish. Oops.
BULLPEN BLUES
While Zack Britton went down with a hamstring injury in the eighth inning, Yankee fans were probably wondering why Garrett Whitlock wasn’t protected on the 40-man roster ahead of say Brooks Kriskie or Tyler Wade. Whitlock and his 1.49 ERA tossed two scoreless frames in the sixth and seventh innings. Ex-Yankee Adam Ottavino and his 2.64 ERA pitched a scoreless eighth.
Meanwhile, in the bottom of the eighth, Luis Cessa allowed the Red Sox to plate a fifth run on a Christian Vazquez RBI single to right.
The Yankees did get something cooking on consecutive singles by Urshela and Andujar in the ninth inning against Matt Barnes. Yet, Barnes would fan Frazier and induce LeMahieu into a game-ending double play.
GAME 2
Once again the Yankees had a litany of opportunities but couldn’t execute. The Red Sox didn’t exactly light the world on fire either but they capitalized on some miscues for a 4-2 victory.
IF IT WASN’T FOR BAD LUCK…
Jordan Montgomery was a bit snakebit on the evening. Half of Boston’s 10 hits were of the infield variety. Their four runs came by virtue of three sacrifice flies and one infield hit, with Renfroe beating the shift at second base in the third inning. So, basically, take your exit velocity and shove it. Perhaps the most embarrassing sac fly RBI came in the second stanza as Devers scored on a sac fly pop out from Bobby Dalbec to Luke Voit. Pathetic.
MR. EOVALDI IF YOU’RE NASTY
It wasn’t enough that Whitlock and Ottavino embarrassed Yankee bats but ex-Yankee Nathan Eovaldi had to pile on the misery too. Eovaldi shoved for 7.2 frames and fanned six. His lone blemish was a solo swat to right-center in the eighth inning yielded to LeMahieu, who had a four-hit evening and also knocked in the second Yankee run in the ninth.
Circling back to that eighth inning though, the Yankees botched after loading the bases on three consecutive walks against Hirokazu Sawamura, who came on in relief of Eovaldi, as Ottavino would enter with two down and get Voit to ground out to shortstop to squelch the threat.
Ottavino would allow that aforementioned run in the ninth inning but alas managed to lock down the save.
GAME 3
Tommy Henrich’s nickname is safe. Gerrit Cole was far from “Old Reliable” on Sunday afternoon. The Yankee ace was in his Pittsburgh Pirates form and was shelled in a 9-2 loss. Oh, and the offense was pathetic as usual.
THE NO SPIN ZONE
Cole had a flat fastball that only Kyle Farnsworth could love. Right out of the gate you could’ve shut off your TV after one pitch. Cole allowed a first-pitch, leadoff home run to left to Jorge Posada’s Godson, Enrique Hernandez for a 1-0 deficit. Throwing more dirt on the Yankees was Devers, who turned around a 100 mph fastball for a three-run homer to right-center.
J.D. Martinez also touched up Cole for a homer in the third inning. In five frames, Cole yielded six runs, five earned, on eight hits.
JUDGE IT GOODBYE!
Judge provided the Yankee offense in the sixth inning, slugging a two-run tater to left off Eduardo Rodriguez.
BROOKS B-B-Q’D
Oneonta Yankee fans have no doubt heard of the award-winning Brooks’ House of Bar-B-Q. On the bump for the Yankees, Brooks Kriskie was absolutely grilled, burned to a Krisp. OK, enough puns from me but this summed up the both of Yankee scouting in a nutshell. You kept this guy instead of Whitlock?
Predictably, Kriskie gave up two runs on three hits in the eighth inning, including a home run to Vazquez. Fitting.
ON DECK
At 40-37, the Yankees return home Monday to host the Los Angeles Angels for a four-game series at Yankee Stadium.
Pitching probables, Dylan Bundy vs. Michael King, Andrew Heaney vs. Jameson Taillon, Shohei Ohtani vs. Domingo German, Griffin Canning vs. Jordan Montgomery.
