This home run spurt is very alarming for Rafael Soriano.
The Yankees closer has served up a slew of homers lately, a major reason to be concerned about one of the team’s most important players both down the stretch and potentially in the playoffs.
Last night Soriano blew his fourth save of the season and nearly caused what would have been a brutal Yankees loss before Russell Martin’s walk-off homer gave the Yankees a 2-1, 10-inning win over the A’s. In the ninth, Soriano — trying to protect CC Sabathia’s shutout and 1-0 lead — served up a one-out game-tying homer to pinch hitter Brandon Moss.
Soriano has surrendered homers in four of his last 12 appearances. And he has allowed five homers this season — all in the closer’s role.
By comparison, in the 15 years Mariano Rivera was the closer prior to this season’s injury, he only allowed as many as five homers three times. Rivera also gave up only two homers in 96 postseason games. It’s partly why he was so successful.
“[Soriano’s] arm was a little dead today. I wasn’t sure I got him. I wasn’t sure I had [David Robertson]. And I wasn’t sure I had Boone Logan,” manager Joe Girardi said, adding of Soriano, “It’s not injury-related. It’s because he threw two games in one day. He wanted to pitch yesterday.”
Soriano said he’s fine physically, saying: “Not tired. Normally sore like everybody is. … No excuse.”
Still, last night, Soriano almost served up back-to-back homers to begin the ninth. The first man he faced was Yeonis Cespedes, and the Oakland slugger smacked a slider 400 feet to the warning track in center that Curtis Granderson hauled in. Next up was Moss, and Soriano tossed a 2-2 slider to the lefty-handed pinch hitter.
“Didn’t have that same tightness that the other [sliders] had,” catcher Russell Martin said.
Moss drilled it over the right-field wall to make it a 1-1 game. Soriano then put two runners on with a pair of walks before working out of danger.
To be fair, Soriano has been magnificent this year, arguably ranking as the Yankees’ MVP. He’d also fired five straight scoreless outings and three straight no-hit ones prior to last night. And he’s saved a superb 42 of his 46 chances. Still, the homers are alarming. It’s now five on the season and four in the last month.
— Additional reporting by George A. King III