Yankees: Good news, bad news after 6-4 loss to Rays

The vibes were great after the Yankees’ 6-1 win in the first game of a four-game series against the Tampa Bay Rays after the All-Star break. However, they have lost their last two games, including a 6-4 defeat on Sunday afternoon.

The Yankees are falling apart

The Yankees are now slipping even further down the American League East standings. If this trend continues, the Rays could overtake the Yankees by the end of the season. Despite this, manager Aaron Boone continues to make clichéd comments after every game, suggesting that the Yankees are having good at-bats but simply can’t put runs in.

“Today we actually had a lot of really good at-bats offensively. … We’ve got to find a way. We know we’re better than this,” Boone said.

In some ways, Boone is right. The Yankees left nine players on base in the loss, and went just 2-for-10 with runners in scoring position.

A glimmer of hope

Their only hope was Aaron Judge, who hit a home run in the 7th inning to bring the Yankees even closer. But then the Yankees gave up a solo shot in the 9th inning. The damage was done, and the Bombers can’t always count on miracles.

The Yankees produced nine hits and six walks, enough to push them over the hump and secure this victory, but their starting pitching remains inconsistent and the bullpen has been inconsistent. Marcus Stroman went 5.1 innings, surrendering two earned runs on two homers and striking out five. He performed well enough for the Yankees to stay in the game, but Jake Cousins ​​surrendered two earned runs and Luke Weaver allowed another, putting the game out of reach.

Persistent inconsistencies

Once again, the Yankees can’t play a complete game with decent pitching and a productive offense. General manager Brian Cashman certainly has a lot of work to do at the trade deadline in a few days, starting with adding substantial reinforcements to the batting order and several bullpen players.

In a perfect world, the Yankees would acquire a leadoff bat for the infield, a starting pitcher and at least two bullpen arms. That’s easier said than done, but the team does have some reinforcements on the way, so the main focus should be finding a quality infielder to help boost the production of Soto and Aaron Judge.

Weak links

The bottom half of the order was a complete liability, with Gleyber Torres and Alex Verdugo failing to reach base in Sunday’s game. In fact, Torres fumbled a ball that led to a base hit, again proving his inefficiency as a defender.

The team is in complete disarray, but benching DJ LeMahieu was a good start, as Oswaldo Cabrera delivered a run and two hits on the afternoon. The formula is starting to crack and the Yankees need to plug the holes quickly before they find themselves in a hole they can’t climb out of.