Todd’s blast falls just a little short

HOUSTON — Justin Verlander thought it was gone. So did Houston manager A.J. Hinch. Unfortunately for Todd Frazier and the Yankees, the third baseman came a few feet away from cementing his imprint on his team even more on Friday night.

With the Yankees struggling most of the night against Verlander, Frazier nearly got them back in the game in what became a 7-1 Game 6 loss at Minute Maid Park.

What looked like a potential game-tying three-run homer in the seventh turned into a long out and the Yankees are now staring at a Game 7 on Saturday.

With Greg Bird and Starlin Castro on, Frazier — who struck out on an especially feeble swing in the fifth — sent a fastball to the deepest part of the stadium.

“I thought, ‘Holy hell, it was going to leave the yard,’ ’’ Hinch said of the blast to center. “I thought it was out. That’s the deepest part of the yard, and I’ve seen a lot of balls carry. And I’ve seen him hit one arm or one-handed swings this series and the ball carry out of the ballpark.” Verlander agreed. “I thought homer,’’ the right-hander said. “Especially the way the balls have been flying this postseason, really all year.”

Instead, George Springer raced back and made a leaping catch just in front of the wall for the second out, bringing the crowd to its feet.

“When the ball gets hit, it’s my job to go catch it,” said Springer, who called it the biggest catch of his career, “so far.”

“Right off the bat, I thought I hit it out,” Frazier said. “I guess I just didn’t get it enough.”

Chase Headley, who had singled twice off Verlander earlier in the game, grounded to second to end the threat.

That followed another opportunity in the sixth, when the Yankees had first and second with two outs and Gary Sanchez up.

Sanchez was up in the count, 3-0 when he hit a check-swing grounder to short to get Verlander out of trouble.

Sanchez said he had been sitting on a fastball and was surprised by a slider.

“I just wanted to try to make good contact,” Sanchez said through an interpreter. “I wasn’t going for a homer.” Joe Girardi rued the missed chances. “Frazier hits the ball 400 feet and gets nothing to show for it,’’ the manager said. “Springer made a really nice play on it. Those two innings were the two innings we had to capitalize on, and we weren’t able to do it.’’