PHOENIX — The Yankees left Chase Field with the kind of loss that changes the shape of the final week.
New York had Corbin Burnes on the ropes Sunday, erased an early deficit and built a 4-1 lead behind three home runs in the third inning. Heliot Ramos tied the game with a solo shot. George Lombard Jr. added a two-run homer, and Spencer Jones went deep immediately after him. Burnes was gone after 2 2/3 innings.
The opening did not last. Will Warren loaded the bases with one out in the fifth, and the Yankees bullpen could not keep Arizona from turning the game. Brent Headrick struck out Geraldo Perdomo, then walked Corbin Carroll with the bases loaded. Nolan Arenado followed with a grand slam on a 94.2 mph four-seam fastball, flipping a 4-2 game into a 6-4 Diamondbacks lead. Arizona added two runs in the seventh and won 8-4.
The Yankees dropped two of three in Arizona and fell to 89-66. Tampa Bay improved to 95-60, leaving New York six games back in the AL East with seven games remaining. The Rays arrive at Yankee Stadium for a four-game series beginning with a split doubleheader Tuesday. One Tampa Bay win in the series would eliminate the Yankees from the division race.
That setting made the manager’s postgame words more consequential than a routine attempt to turn the page. The Yankees have secured a postseason berth, but the club is balancing a fading division chase against protecting a heavily used pitching staff and preparing an injury-hit roster for October.
Boone’s claim collides with the standings
Aaron Boone was asked how the Yankees would approach Tampa Bay and whether the shrinking division race could change how he manages playing time. His answer included a broad defense of how his clubhouse has responded during a season filled with injuries and a major summer skid.
“And we’ve answered the bell at mostly all the turns,” Boone said.
That is the eyebrow-raising part of Boone’s message. Aaron Judge missed more than three months with a rib injury, returned Sept. 8 and then landed back on the injured list with a right calf strain. New York also endured a seven-game losing streak during a 4-14 stretch before recovering to clinch a postseason berth.
The Arizona finish supplied the counterweight. The Yankees entered the fifth with a three-run lead and left it trailing by two. They did not score after the third and lost consecutive games after winning Friday’s opener 9-2.
The numbers tell two different Yankees stories
MLB’s standings entering Sept. 21 show why Boone can point to a strong season while the AL East table creates a harsher picture.
The Yankees have outscored opponents by 137 runs, compared with Tampa Bay’s plus-83 differential. MLB’s expected record has New York at 92-63, three wins better than its actual mark. Yet the Rays lead by six games.
New York is 33-32 against teams at .500 or better. Tampa Bay is 37-25 in those games. The Yankees’ run production and prevention suggest a club stronger than its second-place position, but the Rays have converted difficult games into wins more consistently.
That contrast gives Boone’s claim its tension. The Yankees have recovered from damaging stretches, but not often enough to control the division entering the final week.
Boone sends Rays a blunt message
Boone also made clear that he is not treating Tuesday as an immediate postseason tuneup. He said rest decisions can come later, after the Yankees first confront the team they have chased for months.
“But first things first is we’re going to show up Tuesday and try and kick their butt. Simple as that. And we’ll keep it simple,” Boone said.
Tampa Bay needs one win against the Yankees to clinch the AL East. New York needs to sweep all four games merely to keep the race alive entering the final weekend.
That leaves Boone managing two clocks. The Yankees still have a mathematical division path, but the postseason roster, bullpen workload and injured players are becoming the more practical October concerns. New York also enters the week holding the top American League wild-card position.
Headrick’s workload adds urgency to Boone’s choice
Headrick’s 79th appearance Sunday was the second-highest total in the majors. His average fastball velocity was down from his season level, although he attributed the result to execution rather than fatigue.
The Yankees have leaned on Headrick throughout the season. Sunday showed how quickly that strength can become an October concern. He inherited the bases loaded, got within one out of escaping, then surrendered the walk and Arenado’s decisive swing.
Boone indicated after the loss that rest could become part of the plan once the division is settled. That could happen as soon as Tuesday.
Until then, his public position is clear. The Yankees are not conceding the matchup to Tampa Bay, even after the Arizona collapse made the standings nearly decisive. Boone’s larger claim is now the part the Yankees must support on the field: after saying they have answered adversity at almost every turn, their next test arrives with the Rays in position to celebrate at Yankee Stadium.
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