Déjà Vu for The New York Yankees as it is right in front of us

Aaron Rogers

7/11/24

The Yankees looked to put an end to their slump after having an abysmal June. After going 2-6 on the
recent road trip, they came back home to face the Cincinnati Reds. Luis Gil was on the bump for game one as in his
last three starts he is 0-3 with a 14.90 ERA, after going 9-1 with 2.03 ERA in his first 14 outings. Reporters have
asked manager Aaron Boone if it is fatigue and he stated “I don’t think this is a fatigue issue. I think it’s just a little
out-of-sorts issue and having a harder time correcting on the fly”. Gil went four innings pitched giving up four runs
on two hits while walking three and two hit batters. The third time through the order continues to give him struggle
to execute his pitches. Gleyber Torres got the Yankees on the board in the sixth inning with a single to center
allowing Judge to score as Verdugo went to third allowing Torres to go to second. Ben Rice would then hit a double
to right scoring both Verdugo and Torres to cut the Reds lead to 5-3. Aaron Judge in the seventh inning continued to
mash the ball as he hit his major league-leading 32nd home run. The Reds would hold off the Yankees comeback
and win 5-4 on Tuesday night.

Carlos Rodon was on the bump for game two as he also was looking to turn things around as he lost his
previous three starts. Rodon went five and one innings pitched only giving up three runs on three hits while striking
out eight and walking two. Unfortunately that wasn’t enough for him to get the win as the Yankees offense
continued to struggle as they were being shutout with only two hits going into the seventh inning. Volpe got the
Yankees on the board as he broke his 0-18 slump with a two run double in the seventh. The next at bat Soto would
walk on a wild pitch putting runners at the corners in a 3-2 game. But the story of the Yankees’ late struggle to get
that clutch hit as Aaron Judge grounded into an inning double play to stop the momentum. In the ninth inning the
Yankees failed to capitalize on a lead off walk as Volpe would ground into another double play to end the inning as
the Reds won 3-2

The Yankees were trying to avoid the sweep as they went to Marcus Stroman who has been one of their
most reliable pitchers recently. Stroman went five innings pitched allowing five earned runs on five hits while
striking out six and walking two. Aaron Boone changed up the lineup by moving Ben Rice to the leadoff spot as
Vople continues to struggle with the bat. The offense was yet again lifeless until the fifth inning where Austin Wells
hit a lead off home run to get the Yankees on the board. Later in the inning Ben Rice would hit his first ever major
league home run to right field in the Judge’s Chambers bringing the score to 5-2. In the seventh inning Soto would
hit a two run home run to bring the Reds lead to 8-4. The Cincinnati Reds completed a three-game sweep of reeling
New York with an 8-4 victory Thursday. New York (54-35) has lost 13 of 17 games and 14 of 19 after a 49-21 start.

After getting swept by the Reds the Yankees started a three game set against the Boston Red Sox. Nasty
Nestor was on the bump for the Yankees and his splits from being home and on the road continued as he pitched six
innings only giving up one run on three hits while striking out eight and walking one batter. The Yankees offense
continued to struggle but the Red Sox defense bailed them out as Wells grounded into a fielder’s choice allowing
Soto to score and for Cabrera to be safe at second on a throwing error to give the Yankees a 1-0 lead. Volpe would
later walk with the bases loaded to score Judge, giving the Yankees a 2-0 lead. Grisham grounded out to second
allowing Cabrera to score to give the Yankees a 3-0 lead. Anthony Volpe and DJ LeMahieu made a double mental
error that cost the Yankees a run in the third inning, both failing to run hard and allowing the Red Sox to turn an
inning-ending double play. Gleyber Torres left in the fourth after aggravating his right groin while beating out an
infield hit that sparked the fourth-inning rally. Holmes, without a save since June 9, allowed a two-out single in the
ninth allowing Yoshida to hit a two run home run to tie it in the ninth. In extras with the ghost runner on second
Tommy Kahnle allowed a two run home run in the top of the tenth.

Gerrit Cole was on the bump for game two of the series as he went four and one inning pitched allowing
four earned runs on seven hits, striking out eight while walking two. Ben Rice led off the game with a home run in
the top of the first. In the third inning Verdugo hit a two run home run to tie the game 3-3. In the fifth inning Cole
gave up another home run to Rafael Devers which continues to own the Yankees and the Yankees ace. The offense
woke up after Cole got taken out of the game. In the bottom of the fifth Volpe hit a ground rule double to score
Judge. With the bases loaded Wells walked to score Verdugo. Cabrera hit a sacrifice fly to right to score Volpe. DJ
Lemahieu singled to left to score Grisham. Ben Rice hit a three run home run for his second of the day to bring the
score to 10-4. In the seventh inning the offense continued to add on as Lemahieu singled to right to score Grisham.
Ben Rice hit his third home run of the game to give the Yankees a 14-4 win over the Red Sox.

Luis Gil allowed four hits over six and two third innings. He struck out nine and walked none for the first
time in his big career. The Yankees lost another series to an AL East foe, second time to the Boston Red Sox. The

Yankees look to finish the first half on a high note as they go on the road to Tampa for a three game set and a three
game set against Baltimore. As Aaron Boone brought back the famous quote “It is right in front of us”.