Yankees Observations: Sunday’s Loss Hurts Bad

The Yankees’ loss on Sunday afternoon to the Orioles came at a time in the season when it’s unacceptable to drop must-have games.

It’s truly remarkable how quickly the proverbial air was sucked out of Yankee Stadium after the club dropped an all too important series sweep against the Baltimore Orioles.

The YES Network’s Michael Kay said it best, September baseball needs to be played as if it were a game in the NCAA March Madness Tournament. You simply can’t afford to lose. Because with the defeat, the Yankees dropped to 3.5 games back of the Orioles for the final Wild Card spot and 6.5 games of the first-place Toronto Blue Jays.

It’s safe to say that 9/10 Yankees fans are just about past the shock and awe of this club even being in contention. The Yankees are right in the thick it, so let’s put the excuses aside–that the Baby Bombers’ bats went silent against Orioles starter Kevin Gausman, because inconsistency is to be expected from rookies.

Gary Sanchez may not have hit his daily home run (three in the last four games), but he still managed to go 2-4 with a double.

Aaron Judge, while being named the starting right fielder on his arrival from Triple-A, is knee deep in a major offensive funk. There’s no doubt he’ll eventually come out of it, but it’s possible that time may not come until 2017. Perhaps not pressuring him to start every single day would be a benefit to his lackluster .209/.300/.395 slash line.

Brett Gardner strikes out way too much to be a leadoff hitter. Two more times on Sunday brings his season total to 88 Ks. I get that he’s leading the club with 53 walks, but the positive to negative relation is starting to pull to the latter. It’s time to drop him in the order. Again, take some pressure off a guy not exactly excelling at a particular duty.

Ronald Torreyes continues to get on base, slapping base hits while bringing his batting average to a solid .298. Ride him while he’s hot, but don’t forget about Chase Headley. He did hit a home run in the Baltimore series.

Still playing the fourth fiddle when it comes to outfielders, Aaron Hicks had a single and a stolen base, while also showing great range in center field.

Mark Teixeira‘s bat looked really slow at times, striking out twice; yet he did manage to find a seam through the shift in the 4th inning for a vintage Tex-like at-bat.

Speaking of the 4th inning, what was third base coach Joe Espada thinking, waving Sanchez around second base like a mad man, after Teixeira’s base knock? I get that Manny Machado wasn’t in the exact vicinity of the third base bag, but come on! Right fielder and game MVP Steve Pearce came up with the ball cleanly and fired a bullet to where Machado was standing, up the line. All that was left for Machado to do was simply grab the throw, turn towards Sanchez, and apply the tag. 

More from Yanks Go Yard

• Yankees’ Clay Holmes trade just became even bigger disaster for Pirates
• Mets stealing New York Post’s entire Yankees offseason plan is hilarious
• Predicting Yankees-Diamondbacks LF trade package after Ken Rosenthal update
• Yankees add to championship core with Wilmer Difo signing
• Aaron Judge’s ‘breadcrumbs’ showed he was never leaving Yankees, has more moves in mind

Like Orioles play-by-play announcer Gary Thorne said ‘what was he thinking!’ At the time, the game was locked at 0-0. Tex’s single should have put two men on with no one out, and the possibility of a huge inning on the way. Thanks a lot, Espada.

Leaving runners in scoring position will always come back to haunt you. The Yankees were 0-6 in such opportunities: McCann 0-1, Hicks 0-1, Castro 0-1, Teixeira 0-2, and Gardner 0-1.

Let’s be realistic about Ben Heller. He’s got great stuff, I even liken him to a young Rob Nen. But don’t be surprised that Mark Trumbo (who leads the world with 40 HR) went yard off a 96mph fastball that had zero movement. The kid has been up with the Yankees for less than a week.

Overall, CC Sabathia had an excellent game, until the sixth inning. It’s not like he was shelled after that BP fastball to Steve Pearce, who turned on it for a solo home run. It’s just that anyone with a working pair of eyes can tell when Sabathia begins to tire. His balls are left elevated in the strike zone, making him susceptible to hits and/or walks. Kudos to the eight strikeouts, though. Sabathia’s cutter was nasty at times. I just wonder if he were to pitch more to contact while maintaining maximum velocity early in the games if it would benefit him come the 5th or 6th innings when he begins to tire.

Next: Cano Could Have Helped This Yankees Team

So while it’s only one loss in a string of otherwise successful campaigns, it’s a game that the Yankees let slip away; one that may have changed the tide of the season in the wrong direction.