Same old, same old. The Yankees lost to the Astros on Wednesday night for the fourth time in five tries this season, this time by the score of 5-2. New York has now scored four or fewer runs in nine straight games. Not coincidentally, they are 2-7 in those nine games.
Big Mike In The Bronx
Michael Pineda’s first start back in Yankee Stadium after getting hurt in April went very well considering he was on a strict pitch count. The Astros touched him up for one run in the fourth inning on a single (Robbie Grossman), a sac bunt (Jose Altuve), and a loud double into the right field corner (Dexter Fowler), but that was it. Pineda was charged with a second run but we’ll get to that in a bit. He struck out three, walked one, allowed four hits, and threw 66 of 89 pitches for strikes (74%). Last time out he threw 67 pitches.
I don’t know if this is the norm, but Pineda seemed extra fidgety on the mound all night. Lots of stretching, lots of flexing, stuff like that. If he was in some kind of discomfort or just didn’t feel well, it didn’t show in the quality of his stuff, which was crisp from start to finish. He even threw some hard 90 mph changeups. (They might have been two-seamers, actually.) So far, so good for Pineda since he’s come off the disabled list. Just needs to continue getting stretched out, that’s all. He looks just as good as he did in April and that’s the most important thing.
The Bronx Bombers Squeeze Bunters
It’s amazing what it takes for the Yankees to score a run these days. It seemed like just yesterday people were saying this team hit too many homers and needed to play more small ball and all that. Now the number three hitter has to lay down a squeeze bunt with two outs against the Astros in mid-August just to take a 2-1 run lead in the fifth inning. I miss offense. Ichiro Suzuki’s single and stolen base combined with Derek Jeter’s ground out set up Jacoby Ellsbury’s run-scoring bunt, which was perfect. The Astros had no chance to get either runner. Desperate times, I guess.
The Yankees scored their first run a half-inning earlier, when Stephen Drew hit his first homer in pinstripes. I wouldn’t call it a Yankee Stadium cheapie, but he didn’t exactly crush it either. It landed in the bullpen, right next to stands. The homer and the squeeze bunt were the extent of the team’s run scoring on the night, though they sure had a bunch of chances. Eight at-bats with runners in scoring position overall, and the only hit was Ellsbury’s bunt. The lack of hitting with runners in scoring position is only a symptom, not the real problem. The real problem is a straight up lack of good hitters.
The B Team
Because they had each pitched three times in the last four games, the late-inning trio of Shawn Kelley, Dellin Betances, and David Robertson was apparently unavailable. Or at least one or two of them was, with the other guy(s) being held back for the eighth or ninth inning. That meant the B Team relievers were going to see high-leverage work because we all know the offense wasn’t going to give them any breathing room.
Pineda started the seventh inning but was lifted immediately after walking Jason Castro, the leadoff hitter. I can’t tell you how much I hate it when Joe Girardi sends his starter back out to start another inning when his leash is only one base-runner, especially when it’s someone on a pitch limit like Pineda. I hate it. Hate hate hate it. Just let the reliever start the inning fresh, you know? Anyway, that leadoff walk put the wheels in motion for Houston’s comeback.
In came David Huff — for the first time in ten days — to face the left-handed Jon Singleton (strike out) and the switch-hitting Marwin Gonzalez (single). Esmil Rogers replaced him with runners on first and second with one out, and he proceeded to allow four straight singles. All in the span of six pitches too. Matt Dominguez singled to load the bases, Jake Marisnick singled to tie the game at two, Grossman singled in two runs to give Houston a 4-2 lead, then Altuve capped it off with a single to score another run and make it 5-2. It happened in the blink of an eye.
The Yankees have an eight-man bullpen but only three are actually trustworthy right now. Maybe two depending on your opinion of Kelley. They’re wasting their time with guys like Rich Hill — what’s the point of dumping Matt Thornton if this is the guy you replace him with, even temporarily? — and others like Rogers and Chase Whitley just aren’t all that good. The lack of offense means Girardi’s go-to relievers have to work a lot, and every so often they need a rest. That’s how you end up with nights like this.
Leftovers
Brett Gardner (walk) and Jeter (single) reached base with two outs in the seventh to feign a rally but Ellsbury struck out to end the inning, so that was that. Almost the exact same thing happened in the ninth — Gardner (single) and Jeter (walk) reached base with two outs, meaning Ellsbury represented the tying run, but he flew out to right to end the game. The three-run bunt just wasn’t in the cards either time.
Jeter, Ellsbury, Chase Headley, and Ichiro all had two hits and both Gardner and Drew had one. Gardner, Jeter, and Drew each drew a walk. The Yankees stole four bases against Scott Feldman (two by Ellsbury, one each by Jeter and Ichiro) and got thrown out once (Headley). Feldman is really slow to the plate and ranks near the top of the league in stolen bases allowed.
Rogers tacked on a scoreless eighth inning after making a mess of things in the seventh and Whitley retired the side in order in the ninth. He had some help by Gardner, who made running catch in foul territory, hit the wall at hip-level, and flipped into the stands. Gardner held onto the ball and was fine. It wasn’t a violent fall or anything. Still a nice play.
According to the YES broadcast, Ellsbury’s squeeze bunt was the team’s first go-ahead bunt base hit in the fifth inning or later since August 1996, when Girardi did it. I doubt he was batting third. It was their second successful squeeze bunt of the year — Brendan Ryan did it to the Pirates back in May.
Box Score, WPA Graph & Standings
MLB.com is the place to go for the box score and video highlights, FanGraphs has some other stats, and ESPN has the updated standings. Both the Orioles and Tigers won, so the Yankees are 9.5 and five games back in the AL East and second wild-card races, respectively. FanGraphs has their postseason odds at 6.3%. That’s really low!
Source: FanGraphs
Up Next
The Yankees will look to avoid getting swept by the Astros at home in the year of our lord 2014 on Thursday afternoon. Brandon McCarthy and Dallas Keuchel will be the pitching matchup in the matinee. RAB Tickets can get you in the door if you want to claw your eyes out in Yankee Stadium rather than at home.
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