The Yankees scored 7 runs, got a huge night from Luis García Jr., watched Cody Bellinger finally break out of his home run drought, and still somehow walked out of Yankee Stadium with a loss.
That one is going to sting.
Houston rallied late against the Yankees bullpen Tuesday night, scoring 6 runs after Will Warren left the game and beating New York 9-7. The loss dropped the Yankees to 74-57.
Bellinger finally gets one
The Astros struck first, getting a solo home run from Yainer Diaz in the 2nd and another run in the 3rd to make it 2-0.
Then Cody Bellinger finally delivered the swing Yankees fans had been waiting on.
With Trent Grisham and Luis García Jr. aboard in the bottom of the 3rd, Bellinger launched a 3-run homer to right field, giving the Yankees a 3-2 lead. It was Bellinger’s 12th homer of the season and snapped a 32-game home run drought.
Houston tied it in the 5th, but García answered immediately.
Ben Rice walked and García crushed a 2-run homer to right, putting the Yankees back ahead 5-3.
García was easily the best Yankees hitter on the field. He finished 4-for-5 with a home run, a double, 3 RBI and 2 runs scored. It was his 3rd 4-hit game of the season.
The bullpen couldn’t hold it
Warren wasn’t dominant, but he gave the Yankees a chance. He allowed 3 runs, 2 earned, on 7 hits across 5 innings while striking out 4.
Then everything started falling apart.
Fernando Cruz entered in the 6th and surrendered a 2-run homer to Jeremy Peña, tying the game 5-5.
The Yankees fought back again in the 7th. Grisham walked, Rice singled and García ripped an RBI double into right field to put New York ahead 6-5.
At that point, the offense had done its job.
The lead lasted about as long as it took Houston to come back to the plate.
Brent Headrick entered for the 8th and Diaz immediately tied the game with his 2nd homer of the night. Peña followed with a single before Yordan Alvarez drove a go-ahead triple into deep right-center. Isaac Paredes added an RBI single, and suddenly a 6-5 Yankees lead had turned into an 8-6 deficit.
Headrick recorded just 2 outs while allowing 4 hits and 3 runs.
Spencer Jones doubled to begin the bottom of the 8th and Jazz Chisholm Jr. brought him home with an RBI single, cutting the deficit to 8-7.
But Austin Wells grounded into a double play, and Josh Hader eventually shut the door.
Houston added another run against Bradley Hanner in the 9th when Diaz drove home Cam Smith, completing a monster 3-for-4 night with 2 homers and 3 RBI.
Hader retired the Yankees in order in the bottom of the 9th for his 19th save in 19 chances.
This wasn’t an offensive failure. The Yankees scored 7. García carried the lineup. Bellinger finally went deep. They took the lead 3 different times.
The problem was simple: the bullpen couldn’t protect any of them.
When you’re trying to win games down the stretch, a 6-5 lead at Yankee Stadium entering the 8th has to mean something. On Tuesday night, it didn’t.
Born in Manhattan, New York, Felix Pantaleon is a Dominican-American digital content creator and the founder of NYYNEWS, one of the first and longest-running independent New York Yankees content creator platforms, active since 2005.
