ST. PETERSBURG – After a baker’s dozen of head-to-head showdowns throughout the regular season, the Yankees needed no refresher on the Rays’ reputation ahead of this American League Division Series. Tampa Bay would use its athleticism, put the ball in play and push the envelope.
“You’ve got to take care of the ball against them,” manager Aaron Boone said earlier this week. “If you’re clean there, there’s outs to be had.”
Boone’s club boasts many strengths, but defensive fundamentals are rarely mentioned among its best attributes. That reared itself in nightmarish fashion with a four-error performance in Monday’s 5-2 Game 2 loss at Tropicana Field, sending the Yankees home with their season on the brink.
In all best-of-five postseason series, teams with a 2-0 lead have gone on to win the series 83 of 93 times (89%). Teams that have won the first two games at home in Division Series with the current 2-2-1 format have gone on to win the series 33 of 36 times (92%).
The last time a team rallied from an 0-2 hole in a best-of-five series was in the 2017 ALDS, when the Yankees advanced after dropping their first two games at Cleveland.
New York’s four errors tied its second most in franchise history, behind a five-error showing in Game 2 of the 1976 AL Championship Series at Kansas City.
Tampa Bay put the leadoff man on in four of five innings against Cam Schlittler, starting with Yandy Díaz, who reached when third baseman Ryan McMahon booted a grounder – one of three first-inning miscues.
Jazz Chisholm Jr. made a wild throw on a fielder’s choice and Austin Wells was tagged for a catcher’s interference, with Díaz scoring the game’s first run.
"I think it’s their game. They put the ball in play a ton," Wells said. "They don’t really miss. They don’t strike out a lot. So that wasn’t really the goal going in, to strike out everybody. But I think we’ve got to start the game better and take the outs they give us."
The likely AL Cy Young Award winner, Schlittler attempted to hold the Rays down with a gritty effort, despite throwing 41 pitches in the first two innings and 53 through three. Ben Rice tied the score with a fourth-inning homer off Freddy Peralta, who allowed three hits over 4 2/3 innings.
Rice’s homer represented the Yankees’ first run of the ALDS after they were limited to one hit in Game 1. Cody Bellinger flied out to deep center in the fifth, leaving the bases loaded, and Tampa Bay chased Schlittler in the home half with early knocks and ball-in-play pressure.
Jonathan Aranda singled in front of right fielder Spencer Jones and Junior Caminero doubled to the wall in right-center field, setting up Liam Hicks’ run-scoring groundout and a Chandler Simpson chopper that shortstop George Lombard Jr. couldn’t handle – briefly ruled an error, then changed to a fielder’s choice.
Brent Headrick relieved Schlittler, and after striking out Victor Mesa Jr. he induced a Jonny DeLuca grounder that Lombard threw errantly to first base. Richie Palacios, who grew up in Brooklyn as a self-described die-hard Yankees fan, laced a two-run single to center field that padded Tampa Bay’s advantage.
"These guys worked their [butts] off all year to get to a position like today," Schlittler said. "We expect a lot out of each other. It’s been great all year. We just didn’t play our brand of baseball, and I know we can play better baseball, and that starts with me on the mound. So we’ve got to flush it and get ready for Wednesday."
The Yankees have now lost seven of nine at Tropicana Field this year, including the postseason.