NEW YORK -- A couple of days removed from the nailbiting loss in the series finale against the Braves, manager Aaron Boone spoke frankly on Tuesday about the quiet stretch that the Yankees’ offense has found itself in recently -- one that is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore.
Entering the opener vs. the Mariners, the club’s post-All-Star break stretch has been a slog with the bats: It was collectively hitting .199 (last in the Majors) with a .625 OPS (29th).
Still, even Boone’s honest assessment was tinged with a certain level of optimism that has felt like the manager’s trademark skill during his tenure.
“Been a struggle -- several weeks now where it’s been difficult for us scoring runs, an area we’ve got to be better, and we know that,” Boone said. “The good thing is that we’ve had to play in a lot of really close games day in and day out, and [we’ve] done a good job against a lot of good teams winning those games.”
That tightrope walk continued on Tuesday at Yankee Stadium. After the Yankees went down in the sixth inning on a Randy Arozarena home run off starter Ryan Weathers, they stormed back in the seventh frame thanks to two-run singles by Ryan McMahon and Trent Grisham. The flurry, which featured a slew of singles and stolen bases, fueled New York’s 4-1 win against Seattle.
The rally combined with another scoreless showing from the Yankees’ bullpen to complete the club’s third straight comeback win. Since July 9, 10 of the club’s 17 victories have been of the comeback variety. Prior to the seventh inning, it seemed that the winning side would only need one run to prevail, especially with the way that Weathers -- who tossed 5 2/3 solid innings of one-run ball -- and Mariners starter Bryan Woo were throwing.
But Luis García Jr. led off the seventh with a laced double off the right-field wall off reliever Michael Rucker, and Jazz Chisholm Jr. followed him with a single through the right side of the infield to move García over to third base (the Yankees’ first hit with a runner in scoring position on the evening). After Chisholm swiped second as George Lombard Jr. struck out, McMahon poked a grounder through the left side of the infield for his two-run knock.
Grisham later came up with the bases loaded to repeat McMahon’s feat and give the Yankees a three-run lead. Tim Hill, Brent Headrick and David Bednar combined for 3 1/3 scoreless innings to put New York 15 games above .500 (67-52).