Scranton express can't bail out CC Sabathia in Yankees' Game 1 loss to Orioles

Yankees blow a 3-0 lead and lose 5-4 in Game 1 of a doubleheader at Oriole Park on Monday.

BALTIMORE — Even ballclubs as good as the Yankees can have a bit of an extreme makeover to their roster in-season.

Here’s proof:

Breaking down Yanks’ All-Stars, reaction, sizing up Final Vote, snubs

For Game 1 of their Monday doubleheader at Oriole Park, the Yankees had Brandon Drury playing third base, Tyler Wade manning second, Clint Frazier in left field and Kyle Higashioka catching against the lowly Baltimore Orioles.

On June 15, all four were starters for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in a 14-2 International League win in Syracuse.

The Scranton express provided some contribution again against the O’s, especially in the third when a two-run uprising began with a double by Higashioka and single by Wade.

Not enough.

Not with Yankees starter CC Sabathia losing it in the middle innings.

That was enough to doom the Yankees, who blew a three-run lead and lost 5-4 in Game 1.

Sabathia retired the first eight batters he faced, but two Orioles homers off him turned the game.

Down a run, the Yankees had a good shot to tie in in the ninth when pinch-hitter Miguel Andujar hit a leadoff single off Orioles closer Zach Britton and went to second on a wild pitch.

Drury moved the tying run to third on a groundout to second, but Higashioka struck out and pinch-hitter Brett Gardner grounded out to first to end the game.

The killer was a three-run blast in the sixth by Danny Valencia that turned a 4-2 Yankees lead into a 5-4 deficit, and the Orioles made it stand to win for just the 25th time in 90 games.

The Yankees were up 3-0 until the fourth when Manny Machado hit a leadoff double and Mark Trumbo followed with a two-run homer to left off Sabathia 6-4), who allowed five runs and seven hits over five-plus innings.

“I just didn’t make some pitches that I needed to late in the game,”

Sabathia was distracted because he was unhappy for most of his outing with plate umpire John Tumpane’s strike zone. After the fourth inning, Sabathia yelled at the ump walking off the field.

“I felt like it was (an inconsistent strike zone), which is a tough thing,” Sabathia said. “You feel like you’re throwing strikes and you’re not getting calls. I’ve been playing this game long enough to clear my mind and make good pitches and not let what he’s calling affect my game, and today I did.”

The loss left the Yankees with a 3-4 record this season against the Orioles, who took three of four in April at Yankee Stadium.

“They’re all a grind,” manager Aaron Boone said. “Every win is a good one and feels good, and the losses stink.”

NOTABLE

— Designated hitter Giancarlo Stanton was 2 for 4 with a leadoff homer in the second. He’s now batting .333 (11 for 33) in eight July games.

— Drury surprisingly was optioned back to Triple-A between games of the doubleheader to make room on the Yankees’ roster for Game 2 starter Luis Cessa, who is coming up from Scranton.

— No matter what happens in Game 2, Cessa likely will be optioned back to Triple-A on Tuesday to open up a roster spot for righty Masahiro Tanaka, who is coming off the DL to start.

— Frazier was 0 for 4 with three strikeouts.

LOOKING AHEAD

Tuesday: Yankees at Baltimore Orioles, 7:05 p.m., YES. RHP Masahiro Tanaka (7-2, 4.58) vs. RHP Andrew Cashner (2-9, 4.39).

Wednesday, Yankees at Baltimore Orioles, 7:05 p.m., YES. RHP Sonny Gray (5-7, 5.85) vs. RHP Dylan Bundy (6-8, 4.08).

Thursday: Yankees at Cleveland Indians, 7:10 p.m., YES. RHP Luis Severino (14-2, 2.12) vs TBA.

Randy Miller may be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @RandyJMiller. Find NJ.com on Facebook.