The drama surrounding Jorge Posada was a 24-hour distraction from the real crisis the Yankees are dealing with — they have lost a season-high five in a row and seemingly can’t do anything right.
The Red Sox completed a sweep at Yankee Stadium last night, sending the Yankees to a 7-5 loss that featured another brutal error, failure in the clutch and more uninspired play.
A crowd of 46,945 witnessed another dismal outing by the $207 million club that has lost nine of its last 12 and 12 of its last 20. The Yankees now have one more win than the Mets, and the Red Sox are just one game behind them in the AL East.
It was the first three-game sweep of the Bombers at the new Yankee Stadium. It was the first time Boston swept a series of at least three games in The Bronx since 2004.
Is this 1-5 homestand rock bottom or a true representation of this team?
The Yankees will search for answers today, when they begin a four-game road trip at Tampa Bay against the first-place Rays. It has been two weeks since the Yankees have looked right. Nothing has jump-started them, not even an appearance in The Bronx by their archrivals.
“It seems like when things are going bad, they’re going bad,” manager Joe Girardi said. “It’s going to turn around.”
After one of the most bizarre nights in recent Yankees history Saturday, thanks to Posada’s refusal to play, the Yankees entered last night feeling good after Posada and the team made nice. But the good feelings didn’t last.
Freddy Garcia surrendered a 4-1 lead in the third inning when Kevin Youkilis drilled a three-run homer on a fat pitch.
“That inning was really disappointing because I gave up the lead, 4-1, and I can’t hold it,” Garcia said.
David Ortiz’s solo home run in the fifth inning was the Sox’s second of three on the night and gave Boston a 5-4 lead.
That lead went to two runs when Alex Rodriguez made an error on a slow grounder from Youkilis in the seventh inning. The ball trickled into left field, allowing Dustin Pedroia to score from second base.
The Yankees now have 13 errors in their last 10 games, something that is eating at Girardi.
“I think we’re much better than what we’ve played defensively,” Girardi said. “I think we’re just going through a tough spell right now.”
Rodriguez scored a small measure of redemption in the seventh when he doubled down the left-field line, and Carl Crawford bobbled the ball off the wall that juts out behind third base. Curtis Granderson scored from first to make it 6-5.
Daniel Bard replaced Alfredo Aceves after Rodriguez’s hit, and the Yankees had a chance to tie the game when Robinson Cano was intentionally walked, giving the Yankees runners on first and second with two outs. Nick Swisher struck out on a 99-mile-per-hour Bard fastball to end the inning, though, and leave the runners stranded. Swisher is now 0-for-17 with two outs and runners in scoring position, the worst in the majors.
The Yankees still had hope entering the eight when Joba Chamberlain relieved David Robertson. Chamberlain, who blew Friday’s game, gave up Jarrod Saltalamacchia’s first home run of the season, a solo shot that made it 7-5.
Posada, who apologized to Girardi and general manager Brian Cashman for his Saturday sit-down, pinch hit for Andruw Jones to start the eighth. He walked, but the Yankees then made three straight outs against Bard.
Boston has beaten the Yankees five of the six times they have met this year. This is the first time the Yankees have lost five in a row in two years.
Jon Lester (5-1) picked up the win for the Sox, allowing four runs on five hits in six innings while walking four and striking out seven.
Garcia (2-3) had one of his worst outings of the season, lasting 5 1/3 innings, giving up four earned runs on six hits.
Garcia gave up two home runs, including Ortiz’s go-ahead, broken-bat blast in the fifth.
“314,” Garcia said referring to the distance down the right-field line. “What can you do? He broke his bat and it’s a home run.”
The Yankees hit two home runs in the second inning, but then managed just two more hits the rest of the game.The Yankees’ bats were dismal in this series. The heart of the order — Mark Teixeira, Rodriguez and Cano — went 6-for-34 with no runs, one RBI and 12 strikeouts and one extra-base hit in the series.
“It seems like Boston came in here and did exactly what we do to other teams,” Rodriguez said. “They’re keeping at-bats alive, they’re fouling off pitches, they’re battling and then they get the big hit on 3-2 or 2-2. They’re buying that one more pitch and we’re not doing it.”