4 major reasons the Yankees need to fear the Athletics

A Yankees-Athletics American League Wild Card matchup appears inevitable. Here’s why manager Aaron Boone’s team needs worry. The Yankees have a 3.5-game lead over the A’s in the Wild Card race. The two teams go head-to-head two more times in the regular season, beginning on Tuesday, September 4, 2018 (9/4/18) at Oakland Alameda Coliseum in Oakland, Calif.

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OAKLAND — If things go the Athletics’ way, the Yankees will leave town just 1 1/2 games up on them for the right to host the American League Wild Card.

How the Yankees played Monday, that future looked plenty possible, if not probable.

A 6-3 loss to Oakland highlighted the many concerns the Yankees should have heading toward their seemingly inevitable one-game elimination postseason matchup.

Here are four of them:

‘We’ve got to play better’

The AL Wild Card won’t happen until Oct. 3. By then, the Yankees will have back shortstop Didi Gregorius (heel bruise) and expect to have back Aaron Judge (fractured right wrist). They also hope closer Aroldis Chapman (left knee tendinitis) will return.

So, to judge this present Yankees team against their playoff form wouldn’t be totally fair.

Still, the group the Yankees right now will also be part of the mix, and they have made a habit of playing down to competition lately. Losers of five of their last eight, they haven’t looked like a team with the second-best record in the league (86-52) in about two weeks, since they swept the lowly Orioles in Baltimore.

Judge passes big test

Brett Gardner said he couldn’t necessarily pinpoint a difference in his club but knew things have to pick up.

“I’m just concerned about us playing better,” he said. “I think we’ve got a really, really good team, a team that could do a lot of damage and be dangerous deep into the postseason, but we’ve got to play better if we want to get there. So, it’s up to us to figure out a way to do that.”

Who’s the Yankees’ starting pitcher?

The A’s face a similar dilemma. With Sean Manaea (rotator cuff tendinitis) on the disabled list for the foreseeable future, who would start a Wild Card Game for Oakland is in the air.

For the Yankees, it’s more about performance.

Luis Severino looks like he’s back on track to be manager Aaron Boone‘s starter. He’s pitched better lately, but hasn’t looked at all like the first-half Cy Young candidate he was.

Since coming off the DL on July 10, Masahiro Tanaka has a 2.93 ERA, and he has experience, having started the Yankees’ 2015 Wild Card loss to the Astros. J.A. Happ threw his first clunker as a Yankee his last time out and CC Sabathia isn’t a better option right now than any of them.

Severino is almost definitely the answer for the Yankees but it’s probably one that leaves them a bit uneasy.

Killer bullpen

Entering Monday, four A’s relievers had sub-3.00 ERAs (Blake Treinen, Lou Trivino, Ryan Buchter and Jeurys Familia). Fernando Rodney (0.77 ERA, 12 games) has also been lights out since joining Oakland.

The Yankees have to hope they can pounce on whoever starts for the A’s early, or else it might be over come the middle innings.

“They’re tough,” Boone said. “It’s obviously a tough lineup to go through with the additions they’ve made to the bullpen and guys that have really emerged down there. They do a great job of shortening the game because they can really match up.”

The lineup

The A’s feature four hitters with 20 homers or more. They have eight with at least double-digits. On Monday, it was Mark Canha (16 homers) who went deep. But mistakes to Khris Daivs (40 homers), Matt Olson (24 homers) Matt Chapman (22 homers) or Stephen Piscotty (21 homers) will prove costly.

The A’s .759 team OPS is fifth-best in the majors. They have scored the fifth most runs, too, at 667.

“They put good at-bats together,” CC Sabathia said. “They foul off good pitches. They have a good approach, taking the ball to right field. It’s a good lineup. Just have to go out and make better pitches before I face them again.”

Brendan Kuty may be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @BrendanKutyNJ. Find NJ.com Yankees on Facebook.