PHILADELPHIA – The Yankees are banking on their pitchers to keep games within reach, at least until some of their big bats are ready to return. Will Warren was unable to shoulder that load, with his recent struggles continuing on Sunday evening.
In a start he described as “pretty [crappy] overall,” Warren was knocked for six runs in three-plus innings, sunk by Alec Bohm’s bases-clearing double as the Yankees saw their three-game winning streak snapped in a 11-4 loss to the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park.
“I’m tired of going out there and doing exactly what happened tonight,” Warren said. “It’s pretty frustrating.”
Already lacking the offensive firepower of stars like Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton, the Yankees lost another significant piece on Sunday, when Cody Bellinger landed on the 10-day injured list with a strained left hamstring.
Judge joined the team for their upcoming trip to Chicago, but he said there is no update on when he might undergo re-imaging on his fractured right rib. The captain believes his team can hold the fort until it is closer to full strength.
“We’ve got a lot of depth. We’ve got a lot of guys in the Minor Leagues ready to go,” Judge said. “We called up Spencer Jones [on Sunday], we’ve given [Jasson] Domínguez some good run here to see what he can do. We’ve got a lot of guys that can fill those holes. You can’t replace a Bellinger, but we’re going to keep doing what we do.”
While runs remain at a premium, any stumbles by the pitching staff are especially costly, and Philadelphia pounced on Warren early.
Trea Turner stroked a leadoff triple past center fielder Trent Grisham and scored on Kyle Schwarber’s sacrifice fly, and Bryson Stott lined a solo homer in the second inning.
Warren had two outs and no one on in the third inning, but he let the inning get away, with the Phils putting up a four-spot. The big blow was Bohm’s knock, which eluded a diving Max Schuemann in left field.
“Some mistakes have hurt [Warren],” manager Aaron Boone said. “He got a little unlucky with the bases loaded where Bohm put a good at-bat on him and kind of dumped it out there. It’s just that next layer of execution that he needs to get to.”
Stott added a run-scoring single off Warren, who was making his first start (second appearance) since July 12 against the Nationals. Warren said he is falling behind hitters too often.
“You’re playing in their hand when you get behind, as compared to being on the attack and having them on their heels,” Warren said. “First time through, there weren’t a lot of first-pitch strikes. That didn’t affect us that much the first time through, but the second time through, they were ready for everything.”
Warren is 0-4 with a 6.57 ERA (27 earned runs in 37 innings) over his past eight starts. He was 7-1 with a 3.22 ERA in his first 12 starts of the season.
“I’m confident when I take the mound that I can get it done,” Warren said. “It’s a matter of executing. I have the stuff. It’s really about finding the groove. We’re going to get back to work and find it sooner rather than later.”
Cristopher Sánchez blanked the Yankees through four innings, then was touched for three runs in the fifth, including Anthony Volpe’s run-scoring double. Philadelphia responded with five runs off Ryan Yarbrough in the sixth, highlighted by Stott’s bases-clearing double.
Ben Rice hit his 31st home run in the loss; only the Astros’ Yordan Alvarez (34) and Schwarber (33) have hit more in the Majors this year.
“We gave ourselves some opportunities, but ultimately we just didn’t play well enough tonight,” Boone said.
With the Aug. 3 Trade Deadline approaching, the Yankees are said to be in the market to add a right-handed-hitting catcher and bullpen help. No addition is likely to be more substantial than getting their healthy stars back; Judge said the club’s Deadline strategy is “above my pay grade.”
“We’ve got a good team where we’re at,” Judge said. “That’s what you can do as a player; you’ve got to put your team in the best position to give the front office the ability to go out there and get the final pieces. I’m looking forward to going out there and seeing what happens.”