Another playoff exit extends Yanks' championship drought to 17 seasons
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NEW YORK – There was no team meeting held, no rah-rah speech offered in the center of the Yankees’ clubhouse as the first pitch approached on Wednesday night. Their backs pressed against the wall, the Yankees understood the stakes: Play well for the next nine innings, or endure another long winter of what-ifs.
The Yankees prepared and spoke as though they were not ready to let their season end. Despite those intentions, their championship hopes expired with a 4-3 loss to the Rays in Game 3 of the American League Division Series, with the Bronx hosting yet another visitors’ celebration.
After 93 regular-season victories and a lopsided sweep of the Red Sox in the AL Wild Card Series, the Yankees will spend the rest of October as observers, their World Series drought now extended to 17 seasons as a 2009 parade through the Canyon of Heroes fades further into memory.
Max Fried surrendered a go-ahead home run to Victor Mesa Jr. on his final pitch, a hanging sweeper that landed in the right-center-field seats. The Yankees sliced into Tampa Bay’s lead in the sixth inning on what initially appeared to be an Anthony Volpe game-tying home run over Mesa’s head in left field.
Mesa immediately pointed into the crowd, where the ball had struck a man’s hands.
A crew chief review determined spectator interference on the play, as one replay angle showed the fan reaching past the wall. George Lombard Jr. was awarded home plate, and Volpe was credited with a double. The crowd of 48,865 howled, and after debris was cleared from the warning track, Spencer Jones struck out to end the inning.
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The Yankees were swept in a best-of-five series for just the second time in franchise history. The only previous occurrence was in the 1980 AL Championship Series, won by the Royals.
For the second time in 15 days, Yankee Stadium’s visitors clubhouse was filled by a Rays party – this time, toasting their advance into the ALCS, awaiting the conclusion of the White Sox-Guardians ALDS.
Much like the Blue Jays a year ago, the Rays were a problem the Yankees never seemed able to solve, finishing 4 1/2 games behind in the AL East race and losing seven of their 13 regular-season meetings. Tampa Bay’s reputation shone through: The Rays ran the bases aggressively and put pressure on the Yankees’ defense.
The differences were more pronounced in the ALDS, however, especially in the series-opening games at Tropicana Field. The Yankees were held to one hit in Game 1, then committed four errors in a Game 2 loss, falling for the seventh time in nine games at Tropicana Field this season (including the playoffs).
New York erased a pair of early deficits Wednesday, punching back after Tampa Bay delivered the first blows. Ben Rice lined a run-scoring single facing Nick Martinez in the third inning, and Jones greeted Ian Seymour with an RBI double in the fourth, chasing Volpe around from first base after he’d struck Martinez with a comebacker.
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Fried held the Rays to four runs over 5 2/3 innings. Jonathan Aranda opened the scoring with an RBI single in the third inning, a play that saw Taylor Walls caught in a rundown between third base and home plate to conclude the frame.
Ryan Vilade cracked a solo homer in the fourth, just over a leaping attempt from right fielder Jones. Yankee Stadium is the only Major League park that wouldn’t have held Vilade’s drive, according to Statcast.