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Rays go up 2-0 in ALDS after Yankees drown in errors
Confirmed
In Short: The New York Yankees committed four errors in Game 2, losing 5-2 to the Tampa Bay Rays and falling behind 2-0 in the ALDS.
The Tampa Bay Rays took advantage of the New York Yankees' sloppy defense, winning 5-2 in Game 2 of the American League Division Series (ALDS) on Monday night.
Yankees pitcher Cam Schlittler, the presumptive AL Cy Young winner, struggled in the first inning, throwing only 19 pitches before the Yankees made three errors and four total defensive mistakes.
Yandy Díaz's ground ball directly into the turf at third base was the first of the night, with Ryan McMahon booting it for the first error.
The Yankees' defensive issues continued as they committed four total errors in the game, putting them in an 0-2 hole in the best-of-five series.
Richie Palacios hit a two-run single in a four-run fifth inning, and the Rays took advantage of New York's defensive miscues to extend their lead.
Ben Rice hit a pair of homers for the Yankees, but it was not enough to overcome the defensive lapses.
Manager Aaron Boone acknowledged the defensive shortcomings, saying, "It didn’t seem like we really showed up today."
The Rays, known for putting pressure on the defense, capitalized on the Yankees' mistakes, with Tampa Bay scoring four runs in the fifth inning.
Yankees captain Aaron Judge was left off the roster for the ALDS due to a calf injury, leaving the team without one of its key players.
The Yankees will need to clean up their act in Game 3, with Max Fried set to pitch against the Rays.
"It's just as far as him and the field, potentially," Boone said, referring to Judge's availability.
"We’ve got to come out and play well," Boone added, emphasizing the need for a strong performance in Game 3.
What this adds
The Yankees' defensive errors in the first inning set a franchise record for the most in one inning of a playoff game.
The Rays' ability to put the ball in play and create havoc contributed to the Yankees' defensive breakdown.
The Yankees' postseason run continues with Game 3 scheduled for Wednesday night at Yankee Stadium.
Background
The New York Yankees committed four errors in Game 2, losing 5-2 to the Tampa Bay Rays and falling behind 2-0 in the ALDS.
The New York Yankees swept the Boston Red Sox in the American League Wild Card Series, securing their place in the American League Division Series (ALDS) with a 9-2 victory in Game 2 on Wednesday night.
What's confirmed
- The AL-best Tampa Bay Rays are known for putting pressure on the defense and the New York Yankees are not known for pristine glovework.
- New York became the first team to commit three errors in the first inning of a postseason game since the Oakland Athletics in Game 1 of the 1975 AL Championship Series against Boston, according to Sportsnet Stats.
- -- Richie Palacios hit a two-run single in a four-run fifth inning, and the Tampa Bay Rays took advantage of New York's sloppy defense, beating Cam Schlittler and the Yankees 5-2 on Monday night to take a 2-0 lead in their American League Division Series.
- The Rays are one victory from reaching the American League Championship Series.
- Ben Rice hit a pair of homers for the Yankees, who are on the verge of elimination -- which would extend their World Series drought to 17 seasons.
- The small-ball Rays chased Schlittler, the likely AL Cy Young Award winner, in the fifth -- aided by New York's defensive miscues.
- "That's a byproduct of having a really good clubhouse and a bunch of selfless teammates," Rays manager Kevin Cash said.
- "It wasn't ideal. We put ourselves in a bad spot."
- “It was just one of those games things kind of compiled and stacked up on top of each other,” Lombard said.
What's still developing
- This ground ball has to be an out, plain and simple: Not an ideal start for Cam Schlittler and the Yankees pic.twitter.com/p3wGoJExgL The next batter, Jonathan Aranda, followed with a first-pitch ground ball single by a diving McMahon, who was shaded toward shortstop.
- Both of those traits were on full display in Game 2 of the ALDS on Monday ( TB 5, NY 2 ).
- It could have been a much bigger inning for the Rays.
- It began with Yandy Diaz’s leadoff chopper to third base that Ryan McMahon – who Boone considered replacing in the lineup for a better threat of offense but said he wanted to “prioritize the defense” – whiffed on for the first error.
- The stakes were not quite as high on Monday, but the Yankees turned in an even bigger defensive abomination to put themselves in a 2-0 hole in the ALDS.
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- The Yankees flew home licking their wounds with their season on life support, needing to clean up their act behind Max Fried in Game 3 and Carlos Rodón if they can get to Game 4 to have any chance of returning to Tropicana Field.
- In a recurring theme of too many postseasons past, the Yankees melted from the Rays’ ability to put the ball in play and wreak havoc, even with Cam Schlittler on the mound, resulting in four errors – one shy of their franchise record for a single postseason game.
- Schlittler was the reason the Yankees survived a three-error bottom of the first – a new franchise record for the most in one inning of a playoff game – and Rice homered off Freddy Peralta in the fourth inning to give the Yankees their first signs of offensive life in the series.
- 19, when the Yankees originally moved him to the 10-day injured list.
- Especially as the Yankees creep towards its next postseason series against the Tampa Bay Rays, Judge's timeline and likeliness of making the 26-man roster this weekend is still unknown.
- The Yankees have until Saturday morning to submit their final rosters ahead of Game 1 at 6:30 p.m.