ARLINGTON, Texas — Can’t blow a lead if you never get one.
On a day that began with Aaron Boone announcing he would be opening up the closer role in the wake of Clay Holmes blowing an 11th save Tuesday night in a crushing loss, the Yankees never got a chance to find out who might get first dibs.
Marcus Stroman got hit around across an ineffective 3 ²/₃ innings, which instead relegated the bullpen to mop-up duty as the Yankees fell to the Rangers 10-6 on Wednesday night at Globe Life Field.
Wyatt Langford, who hit the game-winning, walk-off grand slam in the Rangers’ win on Tuesday, is congratulated by Josh Jung after scoring on a single in the Yankees’ 10-6 loss to the Rangers on Sept. 4, 2024.AP
It was a 10-2 game entering the ninth before the Rangers helped the Yankees put lipstick on a pig.
They walked the bases loaded with two outs for Trent Grisham, who hit a grand slam off the right-field foul pole.
The Yankees then put runners on the corners and even forced Rangers closer Kirby Yates into the game to get Giancarlo Stanton to fly out to the left-field wall, where Wyatt Langford made a terrific leaping catch to rob him of a potential three-run homer.
While losing for the sixth time in their last eight games, the Yankees (80-60) also lost their third straight series entering Thursday’s off-day before opening a weekend set against the Cubs at Wrigley Field on Friday.
After holding the majors’ best record on June 14 at 50-22, the Yankees have gone 30-38 and entered Thursday a half-game behind the Orioles for first place in the AL East with 22 games left.
Marcus Stroman, who was pulled in the fourth inning, allowed five runs in the Yankees’ loss on Sept. 4, 2024.Getty Images
“We got to play better than we are right now,” Boone said. “We’ve lost a few series here in a row, we’ve had chances to win all three of them. Could have had a couple here. We know we got to be better than this if we want to get to where we want to go. Hopefully catch our breath a little bit, rest up a little bit on an off-day, but we got to get after it at Wrigley. I expect us to. But we need to be better than this.”
Inside the clubhouse, multiple Yankees said they were not concerned about the club trending in the wrong direction as it heads down the stretch.
“We’re fighting for a division, fighting for a lot right now,” Aaron Judge said. “We just got to keep trusting each other and things are going to go our way.”
Giancarlo Stanton walks to the dugout after striking out in the fifth inning of the Yankees’ loss on Sept. 4, 2024.Andrew Dieb-Imagn Images
Added Stroman: “I think we’re all very process-oriented in this clubhouse. We all know what we’re capable of. A few bad losses doesn’t move the room in a bad way at all.”
Stroman put the Yankees in a 5-0 hole by the time he departed in the fourth inning.
The right-hander had been solid over his last four starts (2.35 ERA) since getting pushed back in early August to work on his mechanics, but his struggles reemerged on Wednesday at a time when the Yankees are trying to whittle down to five starters and eventually figure out their best combination for October.
Aaron Judge heads to first base after walking in the third inning of the Yankees’ loss on Sept. 4, 2024.Andrew Dieb-Imagn Images
Stroman now has a 4.03 ERA across 27 starts this season.
Nathan Eovaldi, meanwhile, stifled the Yankees bats across seven strong innings.
The only damage came on Juan Soto’s two-run homer tucked inside the left-field foul pole in the top of the fifth — his 38th home run of the year — as Eovaldi otherwise cruised, allowing only four hits while walking three and striking out six.
Gleyber Torres and Soto combined to go 4-for-6 with three walks at the top of the lineup, but the rest of the Yankees combined to go just 1-for-26 with three walks before Grisham’s grand slam in the ninth.
“We are right there with every opportunity to reach our hopes and dreams and that’s because of the season we’ve had as a whole,” Boone said. “We’ve put ourselves in position to go grab this thing. But if we want to grab it, we gotta play our best ball, put our best foot forward here with 22 to go. This team right now, that’s all that matters. We gotta get it.”
SOurce : nypost.com
