Daily Report – 6/30/26
Yankees
It doesn’t seem to matter whom they play. With a 7-3 loss to the 36-49 Detroit Tigers yesterday, the Yankees lost their fifth consecutive game.
For the first time in franchise history, the Yankees have collected three hits or fewer in four straight games. They are also the first team in American League history to hit below .100 and strike out 35 times across a four-game span.
For a team that can’t seem to score more than three runs in nine innings without Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton, Trent Grisham, or Ryan McMahon, yesterday’s game was undoubtedly over by the second inning. Despite increased spin rates and velocity, Ryan Weathers couldn’t command his pitches.
“I didn’t have good two-strike execution,” Weathers said. “I gave up a lot of singles back-to-back-to-back. I just couldn’t stop the bleeding.”
By allowing five runs on seven hits, the Yankees’ lefty only lasted 1 2/3 innings. Just like his fellow starters struggled with in Boston, Weathers couldn’t overcome his teammates’ defensive woes. Because of a throwing error by José Caballero in the second inning, only two of Weathers’s runs were earned.
“Especially when we’re not swinging it like we’re going to typically, you’ve got to take care of the ball, and we haven’t done a good enough job of that,” said manager Aaron Boone. For the first time since 1990, the Yankees have allowed 14 unearned runs in five games.
Meanwhile, Detroit handed their manager, AJ Hinch, his 1000th career win thanks to Casey Mize, who twirled seven scoreless innings. He gave up one hit without any walks, and he struck out 10 batters. Whether it’s a lefty like Payton Tolle or Jake Bennett, or a righty like Mize or Sonny Gray, the Yankees cannot seem to find their groove offensively.
One key batter who is struggling is Ben Rice, who went 0-for-4 last night with three strikeouts. A likely All-Star this season, Rice is 2-for-27 (.074) in his last seven games and 11-for-60 (.183) in his last 15. Since being tasked with anchoring the Yankees’ lineup, Rice’s batting average has plummeted from .305 (June 2) to .269. He has 19 hits in 98 at-bats (.194) this month.
Also, Cody Bellinger, who went 0-for-4 last night, has two hits in his last seven games. In addition to his .083 average in his last 24 at-bats, he hasn’t clocked an extra-base hit since last Wednesday.
The June Swoon comes in many shapes and sizes, but a team tends to struggle when its stars don’t shine. Nobody is left to pick up the slack, and the Rice-Judge one-two punch that powered the Yankees to the top of the American League has dissipated.
Because Whethers couldn’t finish the second inning, Boone had to pull six relievers out of his bullpen. Last night marked the 14th game of a 16-game stretch without a day off, so the last thing this struggling team needs is a thin relief core.
After a lengthy first inning, Weathers had runners at the corners with one out in the second when Caballero mishandled his throw on a chopper by Matt Vierling. From there, things unraveled quickly.
Dillon Dingler lifted a low changeup 321 feet to center field for a sacrifice fly, putting Detroit ahead 3-0. Three batters later, with two outs, two strikes, and the bases loaded, Hao-Yu Lee broke the game open with a two-run single.
But in the fourth inning, a fielding error by Cody Bellinger helped the Tigers score twice more. With a runner at first base, Bellinger, the Yankees’ best defender, uncharacteristically took his eyes off a fly ball by Dillon Dingler, and it skipped off the left-field fence.
With two runners in scoring position, Kevin McGonigle reached outside the strike zone and mashed a changeup the opposite way, giving the Tigers a 7-0 lead. Two batters later, Hao-Yu Lee popped a pitch high to shallow right field, and as he hauled in the catch, Jasson Domínguez elbowed Jazz Chisholm Jr. The accident forced Chisholm to exit the game and undergo concussion protocol.
“The infield was in, so as soon as Lee hit the ball, in my mind, I decided I had to go catch it,” Domínguez said. “I called for the ball, but I didn’t call it loud enough. I wanted to make sure [Chisholm] was okay. After the game, I went to check on him.”
After giving up a double to Spencer Jones in the third inning, Mize retired each of the next 15 Yankees he faced. Nobody else reached safely until Jasson Domínguez walked to start the eighth. With runners at second and third after Jones’s second double of the night, Amed Rosario came off the bench and crushed a three-run homer to left-center field.
Rosario’s home run didn’t affect the outcome of yesterday’s game, but it provided a massive boost to the Yankees’ confidence. The Bombers, who lead the league with 55 multi-run homers, hadn’t hit one since Wednesday. Hopefully, they can turn Rosario’s blast into momentum tonight against Tarik Skubal, the two-time reigning Cy Young Award winner.
“We’ve run up against some tough pitching, for sure, over these last several days,” Boone said. “But we’ve got to get some guys putting a little more pressure [on opponents]. We’ve got to do a better job.”
Tonight, at 7:05 PM, RHP Cam Schlittler (8-4, 1.62 ERA) will start for the Yankees against the lefty Tarik Skubal (3-4, 3.32 ERA) (Prime Video, TBS). The Yankees haven’t won a game since overcoming Skubal in Detroit last Wednesday, thanks to Paul Goldschmidt, who is 7-for-13 (.538) with four home runs in his career against him.
One win is all it takes. If the Yankees play a clean game defensively behind Schlittler, their ace, then they might make it happen.
Here is tonight’s starting lineup for the New York Yankees, which does not include Jazz Chisholm Jr. (concussion protocol) or Cody Bellinger (rest):
1B Paul Goldschmidt (R)
3B Amed Rosario (R)
DH Ben Rice (L)
RF Jasson Domínguez (S)
SS Anthony Volpe (R)
2B José Caballero (R)
CF Spencer Jones (L)
LF Max Schuemann (R)
C Ali Sánchez (R)
SP: RHP Cam Schlittler (8-4, 1.62 ERA)
Yankees Transactions:
6/30: NYY recalled RHP Yovanny Cruz from AAA Scranton Wilkes-Barre Railriders
6/30: NYY optioned RHP Yerry De los Santos to AAA Scranton Wilkes-Barre Railriders
6/29: NYY placed RHP David Bednar on the paternity list
6/29: NYY recalled RHP Jake Bird from AAA Scranton Wilkes-Barre Railriders
Schedule
7:05 PM: NYY vs. DET; Prime Video, TBS; SP: RHP Cam Schlittler (8-4, 1.62 ERA) vs. LHP Tarik Skubal (3-4, 3.32 ERA)
