New York Yankees 1-11 Detroit Tigers
NEW YORK — The New York Yankees’ September spiral reached new depths Wednesday night in the Bronx as former Yankee Gleyber Torres haunted his previous club with three RBI, highlighted by a two-run go-ahead single that sparked the Detroit Tigers to an overwhelming 11-1 triumph.
Torres, who inked a $15 million contract with Detroit during the offseason, came through with a clutch full-count, bases-loaded single during the fifth inning against Yankees ace Carlos Rodón. The two-out hit broke open the scoring and propelled the Tigers toward commanding control for the second consecutive evening.
The victory represented Detroit’s first season-series triumph over the Yankees since 2011 while advancing their surprising surge atop the American League standings.
Bullpen breakdown continues
New York’s relief corps, which had already yielded 18 earned runs Tuesday, crumbled once more in late innings. Riley Greene, Kerry Carpenter, and Colt Keith each connected for two-run homers against the beleaguered bullpen, with Greene adding a third RBI for emphasis.
The Yankees have been outscored 23-3 across the past two contests while surrendering double-digit runs for the 13th time this season. Their bullpen ERA since the All-Star break has inflated to 5.37 — a dramatic reversal from the early-season excellence that once ranked among baseball’s elite.
Detroit (84-62) moved half a game ahead of Toronto (83-62) for the American League’s best record while extending its AL Central advantage to 9.5 games. The Tigers have captured four of five meetings against New York with one game remaining in the season series.
Historic futility strikes bronx
For only the third time in franchise history, the Yankees dropped consecutive games by 10 or more runs — a dubious achievement not witnessed since September 1908 and August 1988.
Aaron Judge endured a hitless night in three plate appearances, grounding into two double plays while watching his MLB-leading batting average slip to .319. That lead now hangs precariously as Athletics rookie Jacob Wilson trails by less than a point.
The lone bright moment occurred during the eighth when Austin Wells launched a solo homer, ending a lengthy scoring drought. The damage had already been inflicted by then.
Rodón struggles, relief corps buried
Carlos Rodón (16-8), who had won his previous five starts, completed six innings while allowing two runs and striking out six, but received zero offensive support and watched the contest deteriorate after his departure. The Yankees’ bullpen surrendered nine runs for the second straight game.
Anthony Volpe was benched in favor of José Caballero amid an extended offensive slump. Volpe is batting just .173 over his last 38 games (22-for-133), with his struggles becoming a critical concern as the postseason approaches.
Detroit’s Jack Flaherty (8-13) ended a personal losing streak, earning his first victory since August 19 by limiting New York to two hits while striking out seven across five scoreless frames.
Slater’s surrender symbolizes defeat
In a gesture of resignation, outfielder Austin Slater was summoned to record the final two outs of the ninth. His slow-pitch deliveries registered as low as 36.4 mph — an unintended metaphor for a game and series slipping beyond New York’s grasp.
Despite the setback, the Yankees remain narrowly ahead of Boston in AL wild card positioning after winning seven of their previous eight series entering Wednesday. That momentum has largely evaporated.
Key moments & statistics
With two outs and bases loaded during the fifth, Torres attacked a full-count offering from Rodón and lined it to center field, providing Detroit a 2-0 lead and psychological advantage that endured throughout the evening. This marked just the third time in 122 years that the Yankees have lost consecutive games by double-digit margins.
Yankees roster
| hitters | AB | R | H | RBI | HR | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| T. Grisham CF | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0.242 | 0.349 | 0.47 |
| A. Judge DH | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.319 | 0.44 | 0.656 |
| A. Slater P | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.227 | 0.287 | 0.402 |
| C. Bellinger LF | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0.277 | 0.333 | 0.502 |
| B. Rice 1B | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.238 | 0.326 | 0.469 |
| G. Stanton RF | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.273 | 0.348 | 0.591 |
| J. Dominguez PH | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.257 | 0.329 | 0.389 |
| J. Chisholm Jr. 2B | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0.237 | 0.333 | 0.484 |
| A. Wells C | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0.214 | 0.27 | 0.445 |
| J. Caballero SS | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.228 | 0.33 | 0.327 |
| R. McMahon 3B | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.22 | 0.319 | 0.395 |
| A. Rosario PH-3B | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.286 | 0.32 | 0.435 |
| pitchers | IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | HR | PC-ST | ERA |
| C. Rodon(L, 16-8) | 6 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 102-66 | 3.11 |
| M. Leiter Jr. | 0.1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 12-7 | 5.32 |
| C. Doval | 1 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 21-16 | 3.88 |
| T. Hill | 0.2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 11-8 | 3.14 |
| L. Weaver | 0.1 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 19-12 | 3.26 |
| A. Slater | 0.2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10-7 | 0 |
Up next
Yankees rookie right-hander Cam Schlittler (2-3, 3.24 ERA) attempts to salvage the series finale Thursday night against Tigers right-hander Sawyer Gipson-Long (0-2, 5.59 ERA), who is expected to serve as Detroit’s primary reliever.
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