The Yankees would have found a way to win Friday night’s game in the first half of the season.
This is no longer the first half of the season.
Closer Clay Holmes was struggling for a second straight appearance, coming in in the eighth inning and dropping an infield hit, a walk, and a two-run go-ahead double on Paul DeJong as the Yankees hit their third straight run with 4: 3 lost to the Cardinals at Busch Stadium in St. Louis.
With a reconfigured bullpen, manager Aaron Boone went into last eighth with a 3-2 lead to Holmes. Boone later said that if the Yankees were still ahead, Aroldis Chapman would have finished ninth.
“It’s not easy for us right now,” Boone said of his team, who are 70-36 but only 12-16 in their last 28 games.
Holmes wasn’t the only culprit. The Yankees scored just three runs and didn’t score at all after the fifth, despite defeating St. Louis 10-5.
Clay Holmes reacts after giving up a two-run double in the eighth inning. AP
Clay Holmes botched another save. Getty Images
“It’s pretty frustrating,” said Matt Carpenter, who had two hits and a near homer but was down to end the game in the tie first. “It definitely feels like a game that we’ve kind of been in control of all along. They kept it shut and locked us away.”
The eighth inning started innocently when Holmes gave up a soft infield hit on Nolan Arenado with an out. He then went against Tyler O’Neill with two outs before DeJong – now 5-for-7 against Holmes – hit a two-run double.
“One of the things that has made me successful is limiting exposure to right-handers,” Holmes said. “Giving up a double down the line, especially with bishops, shouldn’t happen.”
The fact that Chapman has been serving better lately, as well as the additions of Scott Effross (who was acquired by the Cubs Monday and served well in 1 ¹/₃ innings Friday) and Lou Trivino to the deadline, numbers around to cater for a very different bullpen down the track.
“Hopefully we all get rolling as we are capable and [Chapman] building momentum,” Boone said. “We have a lot of options”
Nestor Cortes plays during the Yankees’ loss to the Cardinals on Friday. USA TODAY sports
That would allow Holmes to attack right-handers in seventh, eighth or ninth, but he’s been less effective lately.
Nestor Cortes hit well but wasn’t as sharp as usual, tying up a season-high with four walks in just 5 1/3 innings.
The Yankees took the lead at the head of the first after DJ LeMahieu started with a walk. Aaron Judge was busted, but LeMahieu moved up to third place with a Carpenter single.
With two outs, Josh Donaldson drilled an RBI double into right center, scoring LeMahieu and sending Carpenter into third place.
The Cardinals closed the score at the end of the second with run scoring thanks to two walks by Cortes and a two-out single by Yadier Molina.
Matt Carpenter greets Cardinals fans on his return to St. Louis. AP
Tyler O’Neill (27) and Nolan Arenado (28) celebrate after scoring in the eighth inning. USA TODAY sports
Donaldson got into the third with his second RBI of the night and singled in one run after Judge and Carpenter started singles against Dakota Hudson.
Torres delivered in the fifth. After singles and stealing second place, Judge moved up to third place on a Carpenter groundout after Hudson was replaced by Andre Pallante. Torres then got an infield hit that powered Judge to 3-1.
Cortes, who had allowed just three runs in 18 innings over his previous three starts, settled into a groove after Molina’s RBI single and retired nine straight to a walk in the fifth.
But Cortes also hit a season-high with four walks, including one against Paul Goldschmidt, who ended Cortes’ night with an out at the end of the sixth.
Tyler O’Neill first rounds out his RBI single in the sixth inning. AP
A wild pitch from Albert Abreu, who took over for Cortes, sent Goldschmidt into second place.
A single from Arenado sent runners into the corners before Abreu beat Nolan Gorman and scored Albert Pujols for the second time.
But Abreu faltered, allowing an O’Neill strike to make it 3-2 while Cortes ended up being penalized with two runs.
Effross entered and knocked out DeJong to maintain the one-run lead.
Pallante, meanwhile, took over for Hudson and threw four innings without a goal.
Ryan Hesley finished the game for the Cardinals. After leading LeMahieu with an out in ninth place, Tim Locastro ran for a prize, but Judge and Carpenter couldn’t get through.