BALTIMORE — Too bad the remainder of Monday night’s Yankees-Orioles game at Camden Yards didn’t have the spark that Buck Showalter delivered early in the action.
After the home first inning, Showalter charged out of the first base dugout looking to confront Yankees manager Joe Girardi, who Showalter believed accused O’s third base coach Bobby Dickerson of stealing signs.
A livid Showalter had to be restrained by the umpires and continued to point toward Girardi and Yankees bench coach Tony Pena who were standing close by as players and coaches came out of the dugouts.
When Showalter calmed down, starting pitchers CC Sabathia and Chris Tillman were warned and the game between teams chasing the idle Rays for the second AL wild-card ticket progressed without further incident.
It ended with the Yankees dropping a 4-2 decision that further crippled their slim chances of getting into the postseason.
Their fourth loss in five games dropped the Yankees three games back of the Rays, who hold a four-game lead over the Yankees in the loss column with 18 games remaining. The Indians and Orioles moved to within 1 ½ lengths of the Rays.
“I am going to protect my players,’’ Girardi said without adding details to the strange sight of two managers on the field and umpires attempting to keep the peace. “It was something I saw and I am going to leave it at that.’’
Showalter said he was supporting his coach.
“He was yelling at the third base coach. If somebody’s wearing black and orange, I’m not going to let that happen,’’ Showalter said. “I’ve known Bobby for a long time and when Nicky [Markakis] came across the plate he said that they were yelling out of the dugout at Bobby for some reason and I know Bobby Dickerson pretty well, so I knew that Bobby would have something to say on his way back to the dugout, and he did.”
Did Girardi accuse Dickerson of relaying location or signs?
“I think so. I’m pretty sure. But Manny [Machado] wouldn’t have bunted if we had the pitches,’’ Showalter said.
“We’re two competitive, good teams and we’re fighting for the same thing so there’s a small margin for error. But, Bobby’s not giving pitches.”
Dickerson was annoyed that a complete stranger was yelling at him.
According to Dickerson, Girardi said, “ ‘I know what you’re doing.’
“I am not going to let him yell at me. I just said, ‘You don’t know anything, you don’t even know me, to be yelling at me.’ ”
Girardi’s hitters left their bats in The Bronx. Not once did they stand in the box with runners in scoring position against Tillman (16-5), Tommy Hunter or Jim Johnson.
Alex Rodriguez’s homer in the first inning and Lyle Overbay’s home run in the eighth accounted for the Yankees’ runs.
“We didn’t score runs. If we score runs like we did last week he gets a win tonight,’’ Girardi said of Sabathia, who allowed four runs (three earned) and gave up seven hits in 7 ¹/₃ innings.
Rodriguez’s fifth homer and career blast 652 gave CC Sabathia the lead, but the left-hander surrendered it in the bottom of the first when Adam Jones’ fly to center scored Nick Markakis.
Two runs in the fifth hiked the O’s lead to 3-1 and Sabathia’s wide throw to second for what should have been a double play helped the Orioles score an unearned run in the seventh.
“I thought I felt much better making pitches but I put myself in a tough position,’’ said Sabathia, who is 13-12 and had a two-game winning streak stopped. “Giving up that run [in the fifth] after getting two outs was tough.’’