A first half of the season that saw the Yankees look like the best team in the sport for most of the first two months ended in disappointment, as they stumbled into the All-Star break with a second straight loss to the Cubs, this one 4-1 on Sunday in The Bronx.
They were shut down again by another Chicago lefty, Shota Imanaga, a day after Matthew Boyd dominated them, and the defeat meant the Yankees have lost three of their past four series, despite entering the game having won five of six following a six-game losing streak.
All of that is to say the Yankees finished the first half more or less how they’ve spent much of it: inconsistent.
Or, as Aaron Boone said prior to the game of what he thought of his team’s first half: “Incomplete.”
They’re 18-23 since being up by seven games in the AL East on May 28, Following this latest loss, Boone acknowledged improvements needed to be made in lineup and bullpen consistency, as well as on defense.
Cubs shortstop Dansby Swanson hits a home run off Yankees reliever Ian Hamilton in the sixth inning on July 13, 2025.Jason Szenes / New York Post
Yankees reliever Ian Hamilton reacts during the sixth inning of a loss to the Cubs on July 13, 2025.Jason Szenes / New York Post
All of those shortcomings surfaced Sunday.
The Yankees received another solid outing from rookie right-hander Will Warren, who — despite not having his best stuff — limited the powerful Cubs offense to one run heading into the sixth. His final line was two runs over 5 ¹/₃ innings, as he pitched effectively for the sixth time in his past seven starts.
The Yankees, though, were done in by a hanging slider by Ian Hamilton — as the right-hander gave up a go-ahead, two-run homer to Dansby Swanson immediately upon entering the game with one out in the sixth — as well as a lineup that couldn’t figure out Imanaga and matched a season worst with just two hits on the day.
And their infield defense was not crisp.
They got a leadoff homer from Giancarlo Stanton in the bottom of the second — and that was pretty much it.
As Boone noted, outside of Stanton’s blast, Imanaga “had his way” with the Yankees.
Warren got off to a rough start when he allowed a homer into the Yankees bullpen in right-center on the second pitch of the game to Michael Busch.
The next two batters, Kyle Tucker and Seiya Suzuki, also reached before Warren got Pete Crow-Armstrong to line out to left and Carson Kelly’s rocket toward second turned into an inning-ending double play.
Yankees DH Giancarlo Stanton hits a home run against the Cubs during the second inning on July 13, 2025.Robert Sabo for NY Post
Stanton tied the game with a leadoff homer in the bottom of the inning, his fourth of the season — all in his past nine games.
Stanton’s blast was the Yankees’ only hit off Imanaga until Austin Wells singled to right to open the bottom of the sixth. Imanaga had retired 11 in a row before Wells reached.
Warren finished strong and left with one out in the sixth, with Kelly at third after a leadoff double.
But Hamilton, who’d pitched well in his previous dozen appearances, gave up the two-run homer to left to Swanson.
And some shaky defense cost the Yankees in the seventh.
Yankees starter Will Warren pitches against the Cubs on July 13, 2025.Jason Szenes / New York Post
Tim Hill struck out the first two batters he faced, but Suzuki doubled to right-center and Crow-Armstrong sent a hard-hit grounder up the middle. Anthony Volpe snagged the ball and fired to first, but not in time to get the speedy Crow-Armstrong, while Suzuki raced home from second, just beating Paul Goldschmidt’s throw from first to make it 4-1.
More sloppy defense could have hurt them in the eighth, when Volpe was slow to get the ball to Jazz Chisholm Jr. on a force at second and Swanson beat the throw, but Luke Weaver escaped the inning without any damage.
“There’s a long way to go, still,” Boone said. “We’ve got to keep getting better, but we’re in position to do what we need to do.”
