PHANTOM MENACE
Yankees bats go silent again in fourth shutout
On an afternoon in The Bronx that featured a case of mistaken identity, Yankees batters, too, might have been mistaken for players with lesser résumés.
A team that features Juan Soto, Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton and Anthony Rizzo has gone silent. An offense that some projected to be able to carry the team instead is a weakness through the first few weeks of the season.
The Yankees were threehit in a shutout, 2-0 loss to open a series against the hopeless A’s in front of
30,366 at the Stadium for a game that Aaron Boone watched from afar after a bizarre first-inning ejection.
The Yankees (15-8) wasted a gem from Carlos Rodon and continued to scuffle offensively even against an opposing pitcher who hardly was overpowering.
On Monday, it was former Yankee JP Sears (who was sent to Oakland in the Frankie Montas trade) who stymied their bats over six innings. The Yankees did not reach third base and only advanced one runner to second, and Oswaldo Cabrera stranded Alex Verdugo there in the fifth inning.
Four games into this seven-game homestand, the Yankees have come to bat in 35 innings and have scored in just three of those frames.
“Just scuffling a little bit,” Boone said of an offense that was shut out for a fourth time and that collectively owns a .234 batting average. “Still getting a few guys going. We’ve got to mount more than that, obviously. And that’s taking nothing away from Sears. I thought he threw the ball.”
Included among the guys the Yankees need to get going:
Judge, whose average is down to .174 after an 0-for-4 day in which he struck out twice;
Gleyber Torres, who, after his 0-for-3 afternoon, has begun a personally critical season with a .516 OPS;
Anthony Volpe, recently bumped up to the leadoff spot, who is in a 2-for-25 funk;
Rizzo, who owns a career .834 OPS and who has shown little fight through a .590OPS start.
“It’s a grind,” said Rizzo, who added that he is healthy after a season that ended with a concussion diagnosis. “But going to take it one day at a time. Seeing the ball well, just got to put better swings on the ball.”
Several players, though, said they had trouble picking up the ball out of Sears’ hand. The lefty lowered his ERA to 3.38 and caused 14 Yankees whiffs while striking out seven.
His fastball never touched 94 mph, but the Yankees’ offense appeared to have trouble deciphering it from his sweeper.
“Couldn’t see any spin on the ball,” said Soto, who went 0-for-4 with two punchouts. “It was just a white thing coming at you.”
The offense-less and Boone-less Yankees still were tied through eight mostly because of seven brilliant, onehit innings from Rodon.
But A’s bats got to Victor Gonzalez — called upon because Clay Holmes had been used in three of five days — in the ninth. Abraham Toro reached on a swinging bunt before Zack Gelof unleashed a two-run homer deep into the right-field seats for the deciding swing.
The Yankees’ last chance was not much of one. In the bottom of the inning, Volpe, Soto and Judge were blown away by fireballing closer Mason Miller, who turned to fastballs of 102.5 mph, 103.3 mph and 102.5 mph, respectively, to demolish the side.
“Not going to lie, I didn’t feel comfortable at all,” Soto said.
Boone was not around for the ending — or the middle or even most of the beginning.
Boone had some words for homeplate umpire Hunter Wendelstedt after Rodon hit leadoff hitter Esteury Ruiz, who was ruled to have checked his swing and took first base.
Wendelstedt told Boone to quiet down. Boone remained silent, but YES Network cameras showed a fan behind the dugout then yelling toward Wendelstedt, who ejected Boone five pitches into the game.
As it turned out, Boone did not miss much.