By Derek McAdam
August 11, 2022
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Quick Stats:
W: Penn Murfee (3-0)
L: Albert Abreu (2-2)
S: Paul Seward (15)
Aaron Judge hit his 45th home run, which leads the Majors.
New York managed only seven hits in its final two games against Seattle.
Big Story:
The game was a pitching duel between two southpaws, with Nestor Cortes being sent to the mound for the Yankees while Robbie Ray took the mound for the Mariners. Both teams had opportunities, but Sam Haggerty struck first for the Mariners in the 6th, with a solo home run to break the tie (and Cortes’ no-hit bid) and give the Mariners a 1-0 lead.
However, it did not take long for the Yankees to answer back, as Kyle Higashioka blasted his 7th home run of the season to give the Yankees a 2-1 lead in the 7th. It was the first runs the Yankees had scored in 15 innings, and seemed to be a turning point in the game. Judge followed up Higashioka with a solo home run of his own, his 45th, to give the Yankees an insurance run with a 3-1 lead.
Cortes found himself in trouble in the 7th, allowing an RBI single to Mitch Haniger to cut the Yankee lead in half and ending Cortes’ afternoon at 6+ innings of work. Abreu came on in relief to give up a two-run home run to Carlos Santana, who gave the Yankees some problems this season despite being a sub-.200 hitter. Ultimately the score would end 4-3, with the Yankees losing the series and having lost seven of the last eight games.
Player of the Game: Judge continues to give the Yankees opportunities, walking twice and providing a home run of his own. Although it was not enough, he did what he could.
Notable Performances: Both starters gave excellent performances, and it ultimately came down to the 7th innings which saw both forced out. Santana has hurt the Yankees, badly, this season, and provided the ultimate dagger yet again.
Better to Forget: The entire offense is completely out-of-sync at the moment. There’s no situational hitting, as the team continues to rely on the home run for results. The pitching continues to perform well, and while they may have cost the Yankees the lead, they still managed to give up 9 total runs over the three games. It is not their fault for the losses.
My Take: There are not many positives to take away from the way the Yankees have performed since the All-Star Break. They are 7-13 and have not been able to find many ways to win games. More than anything, the pitching has been there. There have been a few duds here and there, but the offense has been ice cold. The team has become too reliant on hitting home runs and has been abysmal in producing runs with the few runners that reach base.
While it’s hard to ignore the fact that the Yankees are on a bad streak right now, it is noteworthy for a couple of reasons. The second half of the schedule has been much tougher for the Yankees than the first half. They have all of sudden began losing to good teams. They have been shut down by solid pitching. This is key for the post-season. The playoffs will feature the best lineups and the best pitching staffs, and the Yankees would be out of the playoffs in just a few games with the way they’re currently playing.
Hopefully, the Yankees can come back to the east coast and see some success, but they are about to play a week and a half’s worth of AL East games. While they still hold a 10-game lead in the AL East, they cannot get too comfortable.
What’s Next?: The Yankees head to Boston for a three-game series with the Red Sox, but will have an off-day before they begin the series. Domingo German is expected to start for the Yankees tomorrow night while former Yankee Nathan Eovaldi is expected to start for the Red Sox. The game is set for a 7:10 p.m. EST first pitch from Fenway Park.
