Boston @ New York preview
Yankee Stadium
Last Meeting ( Aug 18, 2023 ) Boston 8, NY Yankees 3
The New York Yankees, hoping to author a run like the one produced by their 1995 predecessors, found only another quiet night at the plate on Friday.
The Yankees bring a six-game losing streak into their Saturday afternoon home game against the Boston Red Sox.
The Yankees are two games under .500 this late in a season for the first time since Aug. 31, 1995. That version of the Yankees finished with a 23-6 run to claim a wild-card playoff berth.
New York got 10 hits in the series opener on Friday but could not overcome an early seven-run deficit in an 8-3 loss. Aaron Judge homered, but the Yankees struck out 11 times, went 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position and hit into two double plays.
"For us right now, it's (about) continuing to show up with an edge, ready to put in the work and trusting that today is the day we start to get this thing rolling again," Yankees manager Aaron Boone.
Besides being on their longest skid since dropping seven straight from Sept. 4-10, 2021, the Yankees are 6-14 in 20 games since Judge returned from a toe injury on July 28 and 12-24 in their past 36.
"It's hard to lose right now, but nobody feels sorry for us," New York second baseman Gleyber Torres said. "We have a really good team, and we have to figure out a way to win games."
The Red Sox are 6-1 against the Yankees this year and have won the past five meetings. Rookie Masataka Yoshida hit a three-run homer four batters into the Friday game and added an RBI single as the Red Sox got 12 hits and went 7-for-11 with runners in scoring position.
Since June 14, the Red Sox are 31-23. Since dropping eight of 10, Boston is 6-3 in its past nine contests and enters Saturday three games behind the Seattle Mariners for the third American League wild-card spot.
"We're a good offensive team, we believe that," Boston manager Alex Cora said. "It hasn't happened. Hopefully this is the time everybody clicks at the same time and we can go on a run."
Gerrit Cole (10-3, 2.76 ERA), who has allowed two earned runs or fewer in 19 of his 25 starts, will pitch for the Yankees on Saturday. New York is just 12-7 in those starts, including a defeat on Sunday against the host Miami Marlins. Cole allowed two runs in six innings before New York yielded five runs in the ninth inning to take an 8-7 loss.
The right-hander is 7-4 with a 4.31 ERA in 16 career starts against Boston. Since joining the Yankees, he is 5-3 with a 4.64 ERA in 11 starts vs. the Red Sox. Cole lost the lone time he went up against Boston this year, when he gave up two runs in six innings on June 9.
Boston's Kutter Crawford (5-6, 3.80 ERA) makes his 16th start as he attempts to build on his recent success. The right-hander is 5-5 with a 4.48 ERA as a starter, but in his past 10 starts, he is 4-3 with a 3.47 ERA.
Crawford last pitched Sunday, getting a no-decision after allowing two runs on three hits in 4 2/3 innings against the Detroit Tigers.
Crawford is 1-1 with a 2.08 ERA in four outings (two starts) against the Yankees, with each of those appearances occurring last season.
--Field Level Media