N.Y. Yankees: Game Two Loss Features Many Questions and Loads of Strikeouts

From the desk of: BLAME CARLOS MAY

THE PEOPLE WANT TO KNOW

AMERICAN LEAGUE DIVISION SERIES

Yankees and Rays tied; 1-1

I - NYY 9; TBR 3

II - TBR 7; NYY 5

THE CASHMAN REPORT: FRONT OFFICE FOLLY OR FIELD MANAGER F*@K UP

Aaron Boone tries taking a page out of the Rays playbook.  Three times during their regular season meetings Tampa bullpens the game with regular starter Charlie Morton serving as opener and three times Tampa Bay comes away with victories.

With a win in Game One, Aaron Boone withholds Masahiro Tanaka for Game Three, electing instead to start rookie Deivi Garcia in Game Two.  It appears he is tasked with pitching the first inning.  Or was Boone expecting him to go longer?  Garcia faces six batters, surrenders a two out home run and hits a batter.  Boone then hands off to J.A. Happ.  The Rays jump him for four runs on five hits and three walks in 2.2 innings pitched.  At this point Boone is surely expecting a little more length from Happ, who yields home runs to Manuel Margot and Mike Zunino.  Relievers Adam Ottavino and Jonathan Loaisiga each surrender a run as well.  Jonathan Holder and Nick Nelson each throw a scoreless inning.

Tyler Glasnow makes his fourth start this season against the Yankees.  He allows four runs through 5.0 innings on three hits and three walks with ten strikeouts.  All told, he has allowed ten runs (4.71 ERA) on 13 hits and ten walks with 32 strikeouts in 19.1 innings pitched against the Bombers.  

Tampa then puts a precarious three run lead in the hands of their bullpen.  Diego Castillo and Nick Anderson join for three scoreless innings.  

In the ninth inning Tampa's 7-4 lead is placed in the trust of Peter Fairbanks.  After walking the first two batters, Fairbanks fans Clint Frazier for the first out.  Pinch hitting, Gary Sanchez strikes out swinging.  With two outs D.J. LeMahieu singles back through the middle scoring Gio Urshela.  With runners on the corners Aaron Judge grounds out third to first and the Rays win.

The Rays win...! 

Did Aaron Boone blow Game Two or did Brian Cashman's Bureau of Internal Calculations mastermind this?  As previously noted, the Rays implemented this very plan with success.  The Yankees, not so much.  Someone perhaps over thought this?  

But what of the ineffectiveness of Happ, Ottavino and Loaisiga?

Boone who says he can bring back Deivi Garcia on short rest now hands off to Masahiro Tanaka in a pivotal Game Three.  In his only start of the post-season so far, Tanaka was routed by the Indians, allowing six earned runs on five hits and three walks in only four innings pitched.  He made three regular season starts against the Rays, allowing seven runs (4.20 ERA) on twelve hits and just one walk with 14 strikeouts over 15.0 innings.  In ten regular season starts he posted a 3.56 ERA and a 1.17 WHiP over 48 innings pitched.

THE SULTANS OF SO WHAT!!

The Yankees strikeout 18 times and generate just five hits.  Two of those hits were home runs by Giancarlo Stanton.  Through four playoff games Stanton is now 5 for 15 (.333) with eleven runs batted in.  All five of his hits have been home runs.  He easily leads the team in both categories.  Aaron Judge is now 2 for 19 (.105) with three runs batted in.  Like Stanton, his only two hits have gone for home runs.  Stanton and Judge together are 7 for 34 (.205) with seven home runs, 14 runs batted in and 13 strikeouts.

Tampa Bay answers four home runs in Game One by the Yankees with five home runs of their own in Game Two ... which brings us back to Aaron Boone and his loss for words after Tuesday night's game.