Yankees are ignoring obvious Red Sox truth

The New York Yankees fell 8 1/2 games back of the Boston Red Sox in the American League East following a 4-1 loss at Fenway Park on Saturday night.

BOSTON — The American League East battle ended Friday night. It was probably over before that. And, after Saturday, the time when the Yankees really had a shot felt like eons ago.

Still, the Yankees are ignoring — at least publicly — that they’re best hope is to reach the AL Wild Card on Oct. 3.

They’re not winning the division, especially not after a 4-1 loss to Boston at Fenway Park that dropped them 8 1/2 games back of the Red Sox in the East.

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Giancarlo Stanton, who doubled twice Saturday, said the Yankees understand the hole they have dug but can’t let themselves think that way.

“It’s obviously a thought,” Stanton said. “It’s reality. You’ve got to understand it. But it is. You’ve got to try to keep it simple. We lost (Saturday). We’ve got to win tomorrow. That’s it. We know what the deficit is. We know what’s at stake. We’ve got a game we’ve got to win tomorrow.”

Greg Bird, who flew out with the bases loaded in the ninth to end it, refused to call it over.

“There’s a lot of baseball left,” he said. “You can’t look at it like that. We’ve got to bounce back and get a win tomorrow. That’s really the main thing. But a lot of baseball left. These kinds of things can really bring guys together (and) closer, I think can be good for a team. We go through it now, we learn from it and we keep moving on.

“This group, we’ve got some new guys, but we’ve been through it together,” Bird added.

Manager Aaron Boone admitted Boston is “the best team in this league,” pointing out it has the best record in the majors.

He added that the Yankees believe they can beat the Red Sox when they are rolling.

“We know when we’re at our best, we can beat them,” Boone said. “I think we acknowledge who they right now. That’s no denying the season they’re having. We have a lot of confidence in our group and a lot of fight. Hopefully tomorrow starts the digging out.”

He wouldn’t, however, place extra importance on beating the Red Sox on Sunday to take the tiniest chunk out of their AL East lead.

“Tomorrow is always important,” he said. “I don’t care if we’re wearing it right now from the Red Sox. We’re in a tough spot. Tomorrow’s really important. This is the big leagues. We’re a really good team. We’ve got to write the ship. Tomorrow is important. But if we had won five in a row, tomorrow’s really important.”

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