OH MAN! Phil Hughes (bottom) reacts after giving up an RBI double during the second inning of the Yankees’ 5-1 loss. Top, Brett Gardner reacts after striking out with the bases loaded in the ninth inning. (
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Perhaps the Yankee Stadium denizens were simply tuning their lungs in anticipation of Alex Rodriguez’s possible return.
Maybe they didn’t care for manager Joe Girardi not starting Ichiro Suzuki — who outside of Robinson Cano is the Yankees’ hottest hitter — against right-hander Jeremy Guthrie. Or Eduardo Nunez. Or Lyle Overbay, who delivered a pinch-hit homer in the seventh. Or Chris Stewart.
Or is it possible the folks who pay big dollars have had it with The Plucky Replacements’ inability to score in a Las Vegas brothel with a fistful of hundreds?
Whatever the reason, the boos invaded Yankee Stadium last night. That they were directed at Travis Ishikawa, who played in his first game as a Yankee, and Luis Cruz, who participated in his sixth, is a clear indication the three-month love affair with this over-achieving bunch is wilting in the oppressive July heat.
Until last night, the only boos heard at the Stadium landed on Joba Chamberlain’s head.
After winning a season-high six straight and just missing the streak going to seven Sunday when Mariano Rivera flushed a save, the Yankees were overmatched by Guthrie, who hurled the Royals to a 5-1 victory in front of a sweaty gathering of 35,057.
The game started in 87-degree heat and was interrupted for almost an hour by rain in the fourth inning.
The 59-minute delay forced Girardi to remove starter Phil Hughes, but couldn’t deter Guthrie, who won for the first time since June 10 and is 8-6.
Had Royals manager Ned Yost attempted to keep Guthrie away from the mound with a 2-0 lead in the fourth when play resumed against a Yankees lineup that featured Ishikawa, Luis Cruz, Alberto Gonzalez and Austin Romine in the final four spots, Yost might have been decked by his pitcher.
“Hughes worked harder and he worked second,’’ said Girardi, who estimated his starter was idle for 95 minutes, even if he threw in the indoor cage. “I wasn’t comfortable bringing him back. Once you get past an hour or so and with the number of pitches (62) he had, I had my concerns.’’
Hughes absorbed the loss and is 4-8. He gave up two runs and four hits in four innings. One of the hits was a leadoff homer in the second by Billy Butler.
“It’s tough but sometimes that’s the way it goes,’’ Hughes said.”I felt like I may have figured something out in the third or fourth.’’
After giving up Overbay’s pinch-hit homer and singles to Cruz and Ichiro, who was hitting for Gonzalez, Guthrie was replaced by lefty Tim Collins, who left runners at the corners by fanning Nunez, who was batting for Romine.
Overbay’s homer in the seventh ended a stretch of 115 plate appearances without an extra-base hit for the Yankees. Their last hit other than a single was in the fifth inning Friday night, when Ichiro doubled.
After leaving two on in the eighth, the Yankees loaded the bases without an out in the ninth and trailing by four runs.
Yost brought pellet-throwing Greg Holland into the game with runners on first and second, and he gave up a soft single to Stewart that loaded the bases.
That’s where the threat began to die because Holland pushed his fastball to 99 while striking out Nunez, Brett Gardner and Zoilo Almonte to end it with Cano on deck.
“They got a real strikeout pitcher there,’’ Girardi said of Holland, who posted his 21st save and has 59 Ks in 34 innings. “Look at the numbers, he’s closed the door pretty good.’’