Daily Report – 9/11/25
Yankees
To the Yankees’ bullpen: Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.
They did it again! Another epic loss to the Tigers! Last night, the Yankees lost the series to Detroit as their bullpen allowed nine runs. The Yankees’ bullpen has now allowed at least nine runs in consecutive games for the first time in franchise history. With an 11-1 loss, the Yankees have lost consecutive games by double-digit runs, also for the first time in franchise history.
At first, it was a battle of starting pitching as neither team could score a run until the fifth inning. Carlos Rodón gave it his all, allowing just two runs to the mighty Tigers lineup. But then Mark Leiter Jr. gave up a run, Camilo Doval gave up three, Tim Hill gave up two, and Luke Weaver allowed three more. The only Yankees pitcher who didn’t allow a run was backup outfielder Austin Slater, who got the last two outs of the ninth inning.
On Tuesday, the Yankees allowed more walks than they could handle. Yesterday, it was home runs and base hits. After Tuesday’s loss, I wasn’t disgruntled. I thought the bullpen’s performance was a one-off. Now, I’m not so sure, but the Yankees won’t be fooling me a third time.
It’s like all the momentum this club gained when they took two games from Toronto last weekend has suddenly dissipated. The New York Yankees need to get it together. While it’s only two games, there are only 17 games left this season. The Yankees are heading to Boston this weekend. If they lose that series, they’ll get stuck in the Wild Card race, and they’ll have to play a three-game playoff series at Fenway Park. That’s as much of a postseason trap as the Yankees have ever faced, which is especially disappointing because of how talented they are.
“We’re going to work with what we’ve got and we’re going to get it done,” said catcher Austin Wells, whose eighth-inning solo home run was the Yankees’ only drip of offense last night. “We expect to win every single time. When we don’t, we show up the next day and salvage the series.”
But wouldn’t it be nice if the Yankees could score without home runs? I stand by the argument that every playoff-bound team in the American League, including the Detroit Tigers, is just as good as, if not worse than, the New York Yankees. However, those teams – particularly Detroit, Boston, and Toronto – have beaten the Yankees this season by putting the ball in play and pressuring their defense. A major reason why the Yankees lost the World Series last year was because of their poor defense. It’s improved this year, but not enough.
Defense aside, though, when Yankees pitchers begin to crumble, especially bullpen arms, their struggles spread across the team like a pandemic. It feels like midway through every season, the bullpen goes down, then the offense collapses, and the team goes on an extended stretch of losses. That happened in June and July. It cannot happen in the middle of September.
When the Yankees’ bullpen begins to crack, the reason why it often breaks is a combination of several factors, including relievers lacking confidence and the Yankees’ defense allowing extra outs. Whenever the bullpen crumbles too much, the Yankees will focus too much on hitting home runs because it’s the easiest way for them to score. And if they can’t find the long ball, they’ll make opposing pitchers like Jack Flaherty, who had been struggling mightily in August and September, look like aces. They made Casey Mize look like a superstar on Tuesday and Kevin Gausman look unhittable on Friday. In both games, the Yankees lost by five runs or more.
It’s a shame, because on paper, this team is the best in the American League. But until they prove otherwise, everyone who criticizes them – including, most recently, Blue Jays television analyst Buck Martinez – is correct. The Yankees don’t finish plays, they can’t operate a consistent bullpen, and they can’t score runs without going yard.
“This is what we have [in the bullpen],” said manager Aaron Boone. “I have a lot of confidence in their ability and their stuff. But we’ve got to bring it together and we haven’t done that consistently enough yet.”
It’s true, the Yankees’ bullpen is filled with talented arms with impressive stuff. For example, Camilo Doval was a sensational closer in San Francisco, but since joining the Yankees, he’s allowed at least one run in nine of 16 appearances, giving him a 6.59 ERA in New York. The Yankees tried to help him rely on his slider over his cutter, but it didn’t work. He’s been bouncing between cutters and sliders as his baseline pitch, but yesterday, he gave up a home run to Riley Greene and a double to Dillon Dingler that represented three earned runs. This was the first time Doval had allowed three earned runs in an outing since June 25.
“The strike-throwing hasn’t been great, and that’s hurt him in some outings,” Boone said. “Making sure we’re staying on top, controlling the running game, and things like that. So, it’s just been kind of inconsistent for him.”
At the trade deadline, the Yankees acquired Doval, David Bednar, and Jake Bird to help their bullpen. Bednar has become the Yankees’ closer, but it took Bird three innings – all of them bad – to get demoted to Triple-A. In an age of baseball where starting pitchers seldom last over six innings, a team’s bullpen is arguably its most important component. And bullpens become even more important in October. The Yankees’ bullpen holds a 4.54 ERA this season, the seventh highest in the majors, and the highest among playoff-bound teams.
Meanwhile, the Yankees benched Anthony Volpe last night and deployed José Caballero at shortstop. Earlier today, the team revealed that Volpe received a cortisone shot in his left shoulder due to discomfort, which can be traced to an injury he sustained on May 3. Volpe also received a cortisone shot during the All-Star break, the Yankees announced, but they were also quick to say the injury isn’t why Volpe has regressed this season. His labrum is partially torn, and he reaggravated the injury on Sunday, but he won’t be going on the injured list.
President Donald Trump is at Yankee Stadium tonight, the 24th anniversary of 9/11. President Trump will briefly meet with the Yankees in the clubhouse before the game.
Kevin Gausman tossed a shutout for the Blue Jays today. The Yankees got lucky that Toronto lost last night, but their win today makes a Yankees win even more important tonight, especially because Boston has the day off and the Yankees play three games at Fenway Park this weekend.
RHP Cam Schlittler (2-3, 3.24) gets the start for the Yankees tonight at 7:05 (6:05 PM CDT), and he looks to bounce back from a tough outing last Friday (YES). Detroit will send LHP Tyler Holton (5-4, 3.80 ERA) to the mound as he makes a spot start in place of Tarik Skubal. This will be Holton’s sixth start of the season.
Here is tonight’s starting lineup for the New York Yankees:
LF Austin Slater (R)
RF Aaron Judge (C) (R)
CF Cody Bellinger (L)
DH Giancarlo Stanton (R)
2B Jazz Chisholm Jr. (L)
1B Paul Goldschmidt (R)
C Ben Rice (L)
SS José Caballero (R)
3B Ryan McMahon (R)
SP: RHP Cam Schlittler (2-3, 3.24)
Schedule
7:05 PM (6:05 PM): NYY vs. DET; YES; SP: RHP Cam Schlittler (2-3, 3.24)
8:15 PM (7:15 PM CDT): Thursday Night Football (TNF), Week 2 – Commanders (1-0) at Packers (1-0); Prime Video
