NEW YORK -- As Ceddanne Rafaela went swooping into the right-center-field gap in the bottom of the fifth inning of a scoreless game at Yankee Stadium on Sunday afternoon, it looked like he was about to make his latest sensational catch.
As Rafaela dove, and the ground forced his glove to twist, it was impossible for the casual observer to tell if he caught the ball.
But the observer who mattered the most -- first-base umpire Edwin Moscoso -- called it a trap, resulting in a single for Jazz Chisholm Jr. that put runners on second and first with nobody out.
After a challenge by Red Sox interim manager Chad Tracy, the ruling of a non-catch stood, meaning there wasn’t enough evidence to overturn it. Rafaela, who rarely argues, was miffed, convinced he caught the ball.
The only thing that is conclusive is this: The Red Sox and lefty Ranger Suarez didn’t do well enough recovering from that bit of adversity. The Yankees went on to score five runs in the inning, en route to a critical 16-1 victory to take three out of four in the rivalry series. New York (78-59) also took a four-game lead over Boston (74-63) for the top American League Wild Card spot, and, most importantly, clinched the season series win (7-6) over the Red Sox.
In the event that the Yankees and Red Sox finish with the same record at the end of the regular season and they stay in their current Nos. 4 and 5 seeds in the AL standings, the best-of-three Wild Card Series between the rivals will be in the Bronx for the second straight season and not Fenway Park.
Last year’s series went the distance, with the Yanks winning Game 3 behind a brilliant performance by Cam Schlittler.
With 25 games left in the regular season, nothing is set, which means the Red Sox will have to brush aside this weekend’s setback and focus on punching their ticket to the postseason.
Here were some other takeaways from a disappointing getaway day for Boston.
1. Anthony, Story make sudden impact
The big story coming into the game? The activations of Roman Anthony and Trevor Story, both of whom were on the injured list for over three months. Anthony was in the leadoff spot, and on the second pitch of the game, his first swing in a Major League game since May 4 produced a 101.6-mph double into the corner in right. Anthony later added a 109-mph single up the middle. Story reached on an infield single in his second at-bat and hit a double off the right-field wall in the top of the eighth.
2. Suarez struggles
Given his reputation as a big-game pitcher, the Red Sox were hoping for big things from Suarez on Sunday. Though he didn’t give up a run in the first two innings, Suarez was struggling to find his command. It looked like he had settled down in the third and fourth, but the Yankees erupted in that fifth, led by a three-run homer to left from Heliot Ramos.
Overall, Suarez (5-4, 3.64 ERA) was tagged for nine hits and six runs over 5 1/3 innings in which he walked two and struck out two. In 17 starts prior to going on the injured list with a left groin strain, Suarez had a 3.15 ERA. He has a 5.01 ERA in seven starts since his return.
3. Offense in a rut
Until scoring in the eighth inning, the Sox were in danger of getting shut out for the third time in their last five games. Cleanup hitter Willson Contreras has four hits (just one for extra bases) and one RBI in his past eight games and 31 at-bats. Caleb Durbin, one of the team’s most productive hitters during the second-half turnaround, had a rough weekend in the Bronx, going 1-for-12.
Perhaps going back to Fenway -- if only for a three-game homestand against the Mariners starting on Monday -- will enliven Boston’s bats.