MLB

Late summer slide: Yanks, Jeter scrambling after rough August

The trade deadline additions of Martin Prado and Stephen Drew were looked at as upgrades.

Brandon McCarthy and Chris Capuano were already in the rotation and pitching well.

So when the Yankees entered Fenway Park on Aug. 1, they believed the Orioles five-game lead in the AL East wasn’t an impossible hill to climb across the final two months.

Prado, McCarthy and Capuano have helped, but Drew hasn’t added production to a lineup desperately looking for it.

Now, they are nine games out with 27 games remaining and not only is the AL East out of reach.

But the second wild-card ticket is slipping through the Yankees’ hands.

MVP

Jacoby Ellsbury signals “safe” after stealing second base against the Tigers last week.AP

Jacoby Ellsbury hit .324 (33-for-102) for the month and in the final 13 games he batted .440 (22-for-50) with six homers and 12 RBIs.

How much did the Yankees miss him when he suffered a left ankle injury Friday, sat out Saturday, and was limited to a ninth-inning, pinch-hitting appearance Sunday? The Yankees were limited to one hit by Drew Hutchison and Aaron Sanchez in a 2-0 loss on Saturday and wasted a 3-0 lead in a 4-3 loss Sunday, despite Ellsbury’s ninth-inning double.

If Ellsbury is out for a significant amount of time, the Yankees’ fleeting October chances become a lot slimmer.

LVPs

August was rough for both Mark Teixeira and the soon-to-be-retired Derek Jeter.Jeff Zelevansky

Teams rely on veterans who have been there during August and September to provide experience and production, but Mark Teixeira and Derek Jeter didn’t produce. Therefore, they are tied in this category.

On July 30, Jeter was hitting .277 and not among the reasons the Yankees’ lineup was anemic far too often. After Sunday’s 1-for-5 effort, Jeter is at .261 because he batted .207 in August.

Teixeira has battled injuries all season and they appeared to take a toll in July when he hit .203. He finished August at .193 with two homers and five RBIs.

If neither rebound, the Yankees have no chance to play in October.

Game of the month

Aug. 24, White Sox at Yankees

Avisail Garcia’s leadoff homer against David Robertson in the ninth inning erased a one-run Yankees lead and saddled Robertson with a blown save for the first time in 23 chances.

With two out, Carlos Beltran doubled and Jake Petricka intentionally walked Chase Headley. Joe Girardi used Brian McCann to hit for Francisco Cervelli and McCann hit a 3-2 pitch over the right-field wall for a 7-4 victory and a three-game sweep of the White Sox.

Jeter farewell

Derek Jeter has 17 home games remaining, beginning Tuesday against the Red Sox.

Jeter has managed the attention surrounding his leaving well and the ceremonies around baseball haven’t smothered the club.

With a month left and the strong possibility of the Yankees not making the postseason for a second straight season, the spotlight will be directly on Jeter.

On Sept. 7, the Yankees will honor Jeter at the Stadium and years from now it will rank right there with all the other goodbyes from Yankees legends.

The final home game Sept. 25 against the Orioles should be more emotional than Sept. 7 because it won’t be scripted and it is possible it will be Jeter’s last game in The Bronx.

Helping the Yankees’ chances of playing in October would be Jeter playing better in September than he did in August.

Planning ahead

AP
Throughout August whenever it was mentioned the AL East was slipping away, the Yankees pointed to having eight games remaining against the first-place Orioles.

Starting with a split-gate doubleheader at Camden Yards on Sept. 12, the Yankees play four at Baltimore. Then it’s four in The Bronx Sept 22-25.

From there it’s three at Fenway Park, where Jeter’s career could end in front of fans who have filled his ears with obscenities from the seats behind the visitors’ third-base dugout when he is on deck.

Numbers

12: Hits Carlos Beltran needs to reach 1,000 hits in the AL. With 1,329 hits in the NL, Beltran would be the eighth player all-time with 1,000 or more hits in each league.

42-29: Yankees record in games decided by two or fewer runs, the best in the majors.

24: Yankees challenges — 19 were overturned; three confirmed; two stood.

53: Players used by the Yankees this season. Three short of the franchise record of 56 set in 2013.