ARLINGTON, Texas — Derek Jeter is expected to be a Yankee next year after doing the free agent tango.
The way to bet is Mariano Rivera and Joe Girardi return to The Bronx.
What the Yankees won’t have back is the title of defending World Champions.
The quest died Friday night at The Ballpark when the Rangers hung a 6-1 ALCS Game 6 loss on the Yankees in front of 51,404 to win the AL title four games to two.
When the ALCS against the Rangers opened the Yankees’ biggest challenge was trying to avoid facing Cliff Lee twice. They did that. However, the Yankees lost two games started by Colby Lewis and one by Tommy Hunter.
For those sins, the Yankees are home and the Rangers are going to the World Series for the first time in franchise history.
Phil Hughes’ second sub-par ALCS outing and the Yankees’ inability to solve Lewis doomed their attempt to force a Game 7 against Lee, who will draw serious interest from the Yankees when he becomes a free agent.
Lewis, the Game 2 winner, allowed a run and three hits in eight innings.
Vladimir Guerrero hit a two-run double off Hughes, and Nelson Cruz crushed a two-run homer against David Robertson in the game-changing fifth inning when the hosts snapped a 1-1 tie with four runs.
Hughes gave up four runs, four hits and walked four (two intentionally) in 4 2/3 innings.
After the Yankees tied the score, 1-1, in the top of the fifth, the Rangers plated four runs in their half of the frame and chased Hughes.
Mitch Moreland’s infield single leading off the fifth was followed by a hit-and-run grounder to the right side by Elvis Andrus that put Moreland at second for Michael Young, who whiffed in the first and lined to right in the third. He tapped to Hughes for the second out and moved Moreland to third.
For the second time in three innings, Joe Girardi ordered Josh Hamilton intentionally walked so Hughes could face Guerrero. He stranded runners at the corners in the third by popping up.
This time, Guerrero ripped into a 1-0 pitch for a two-run double over Curtis Granderson’s head in center that gave the Rangers a 3-1 advantage and resulted in Girardi replacing Hughes with Robertson to face Cruz.
Lewis, who pitched in Japan the previous two seasons, didn’t give up a hit until Alex Rodriguez laced a leadoff double to left-center in the fifth.
Rodriguez advanced to third on Lance Berkman’s fly to the center-field warning track. That brought Nick Swisher to the plate with the potential tying run 90 feet away. Swisher’s bat wasn’t needed to tie the score, 1-1, because Lewis bounced the first pitch past catcher Bengie Molina and Rodriguez scored.
After Swisher grounded out, Jorge Posada stroked a 0-2 pitch over the first-base bag for a double. Lewis responded by fanning Marcus Thames on a 1-2 breaking ball. The two hitless at-bats with runners in scoring position lowered the Yankees’ ALCS average in the clutch to .154 (8-for-52).
None of Hughes’ first four innings were perfect, but he followed a one-run first with three blanks and gave his teammates, who didn’t have a hit through four, a chance.
Hughes got ahead of Moreland, the No. 9 batter, 0-2, then walked him to start the third. Moreland moved to second on Andrus’ ground out. After Young lined to right, Girardi ordered Hamilton walked intentionally.
Hughes’ first intentional ball glanced off catcher Posada’s glove and allowed Moreland to reach third. With the walk complete, Hughes faced a first-and-third, two-out jam with Guerrero at the plate. Hughes extracted himself from the problem by getting Guerrero to pop up a 0-2 pitch.
Because Granderson was nabbed attempting to swipe second base to end the first inning, Lewis faced the minimum nine hitters in the opening three frames. Granderson was the only base runner, reaching on a one-out walk in the first.
The Rangers started the game batting a healthy .348 (16-for-46) with runners in scoring position and though they didn’t use a hit to drive in the first run, they took advantage of having a base runner in position to score.
Like in Game 2, Hughes had trouble putting hitters away when he got to two strikes.
Andrus opened with a double to center, moved to third on Hamilton’s one-out single to left, and with Hamilton running, scored on Guerrero’s grounder to the right side.