Lost amid the hoopla of Derek Jeter’s return, the disappointment of his subsequent quadriceps injury and the continued soap opera that is Alex Rodriguez’s rehab assignment, has been a lost week in The Bronx.
Four games against the Royals and three against the Twins were supposed to offer the Yankees — who came into the homestand a perfect 7-0 against the two clubs — an opportunity to make up some much-needed ground in the jumbled AL East.
The Yankees were riding high, having taken two of three from the Orioles, and having won six of seven. But instead of building on that streak, they have stalled, splitting the first six games against the two weak foes after Saturday’s dismal 4-1 loss to the Twins at the Stadium, the Yankees’ first loss in six meetings against woeful Minnesota.
“No, [I’m] not disappointed. We’re 3-3. It’s been a week [in which] we lost some games when we haven’t scored a lot of runs,“ manager Joe Girardi said. “The Royals came in this week playing good baseball. We have a chance tomorrow to win [the Twins] series. That should always be the goal.”
The Yankees’ performance this week is clearly not a recipe for moving out of fourth place in the division. Especially because the schedule gets much tougher after the All-Star break: It starts with a seven-game road trip that begins in Boston and continues in Texas followed by a home series against the Rays, a West-Coast trip to face the Dodgers and Padres and three games against the White Sox in Chicago.
“Yeah, we beat up on [the 38-53 Twins] in the past, but they’re still a good team,” Lyle Overbay said. “It’s not too disappointing.”
The week started terribly, with two losses to the ordinary Royals. To their credit, the Yankees responded with three straight wins, but if they lose today, the Bombers would finish the homestand with a losing record — which is not how they wanted to enter the All-Star break.
These six games have been emblematic of the Yankees season. They scored 16 runs in victories over the Royals on Wednesday and Thursday, but just five combined in the others. The pitching has been solid, but not outstanding to make up for the inconsistent offense.
“We still have a chance to win the series [today], so that’s really what matters,” Vernon Wells said.