ST. PETERSBURG – After a baker’s dozen of showdowns throughout the regular season, the Yankees needed no refresher on the Rays’ approach ahead of this American League Division Series. Multiple times, they stressed how crucial it’d be to “take care of the ball” and “play clean.”
Their worst fears were realized in nightmarish fashion on Monday night, and now their hopes hang in the balance. The Yankees committed four errors -- including three in the first inning -- in a 5-2 Game 2 defeat at Tropicana Field, sending them home needing three straight victories to extend their season.
“It’s a tough loss. We beat ourselves today, in a lot of ways,” second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. said. “These are some of the best defenders I’ve ever played with. For me, it hurts us a little bit more than you think.”
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 0-2 in a best-of-five was in the 2017 ALDS, when the Yankees advanced after dropping the first two games at Cleveland.
“These first two games have nothing to do with the next three,” said third baseman Ryan McMahon. “We’ll get back to New York, we’ll get locked in and we’ve got to win every pitch of the next game.”
Earlier this week, manager Aaron Boone bristled at the suggestion that the Rays might benefit from testing his team’s defense, saying, “At times we’ve been very good, and people don’t acknowledge it. At times, we’ve been bad.”
Game 2 represented the latter, a slopfest that Boone said his team must flush swiftly. New York’s four errors tied its second most in the postseason, behind a five-error showing in Game 2 of the 1976 AL Championship Series at Kansas City.
“It’s going to be a rough ride back,” Boone said. “You’ve got to find out what you’re made of. It’s gut-check time.”
Tampa Bay placed its leadoff man aboard in four of five innings against Cam Schlittler, starting with Yandy Díaz, who reached when McMahon booted a grounder on Schlittler’s second pitch.
“Just spun up on me; it had a little more topspin than I was anticipating,” McMahon said. “Not our best start. I thought Cam did a great job keeping us in the ballgame, giving up only one. But it wasn’t great.”
Chisholm made a wild throw on Junior Caminero’s fielder’s choice, with Díaz scoring the game’s first run. Liam Hicks then reached when Austin Wells was tagged for catcher’s interference.
Chisholm threw the ball with his back turned and said he’d welcome another opportunity to complete the play.
“I’d still throw it, honestly,” Chisholm said. “I’d just try to throw it a little bit more close to the base.”
The likely AL Cy Young Award winner, Schlittler tried to hold the Rays down in a gritty effort despite throwing 41 pitches in the first two innings and 53 through three.
“Obviously, it starts with me,” Schlittler said. “I’ll be the first one to say that I didn’t do my job, but it didn’t seem like we really showed up today. So that’s what happens. They played really good baseball and took advantage of those opportunities.”
Ben Rice homered twice, including a fourth-inning homer off Freddy Peralta that briefly tied the score. But the Yankees generated no other offense; Cody Bellinger flied out to deep center in the fifth, leaving the bases loaded.
“I hit it well; got it on the barrel, but ultimately it just wasn’t good enough,” Bellinger said.
Tampa Bay chased Schlittler in the fifth with early knocks and ball-in-play pressure. Jonathan Aranda rifled a single that fell in front of right fielder Spencer Jones, and Caminero doubled to the wall in right-center field.
That set up 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.
“We definitely didn’t help ourselves,” Lombard said. “Against a good team like that, you can’t afford to make as many mistakes as we did. That’s what’s going to happen.”
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.
Like the series opener, when they were held to one hit, the pro-pinstripe contingent of the once-friendly Trop was held mostly silent in Game 2. The Yankees have lost seven of nine in St. Pete this year, including the playoffs.
“We can’t play like that and expect a win,” Boone said. “We’ve got to come out Wednesday night. Everything’s on the line.”