Yankees flounder after German’s blunder, fall 10-2 to Mariners

Thursday June 22, 2023

New York Yankees 2, Seattle Mariners 10

NEW YORK — In a distinctive manner, Teoscar Hernández delivered a powerful home run among Seattle’s quartet of early long balls, causing the Mariners to dominate the suddenly faltering Domingo Germán and decisively defeat the error-prone New York Yankees with a commanding score of 10-2 on Thursday night. This victory successfully halted the Yankees’ attempt at completing a three-game sweep.

Bryan Woo (1-1), a highly praised rookie pitcher, went into the sixth inning without giving up a hit. This helped him win his first game in the big league. Before that, the Mariners’ Kolten Wong hit their first home run, and both Ty France and Cal Raleigh hit hard shots against Germán (4-5).

Seattle received an early boost from Julio Rodríguez, who initiated their scoring with a single, recording one out in a remarkable four-run first inning. Hernández contributed with an RBI single, followed by Eugenio Suárez’s impressive two-run double, and the swift offensive display concluded with Mike Ford’s sacrifice fly.

Occupying the ninth spot in the lineup with a .154 batting average, Wong kicked off the second inning with a resounding home run, marking his first since his impressive three-homer game for Milwaukee on September 22nd last year against Cincinnati. France further amplified the offensive showcase by delivering a solo home run later in the same inning, all while Germán struggled on the mound for the Yankees, intensifying their troubles.

In a humiliating third inning for New York, the team suffered three errors, providing ample opportunity for the Mariners to add to their meager three-run total from the first two games of the series. Remarkably, the Mariners managed to score two additional runs in the inning without even registering a hit.

As third baseman Josh Donaldson attempted to field Ford’s slow grounder, he struggled to make a smooth transfer for a throw to second base, resulting in a fumble. Seizing the opportunity, Suárez recognized the vacant third base and quickly sprinted towards it. However, displaying keen awareness, Germán swiftly moved to cover third base. While it seemed Suárez would be easily tagged out, Donaldson’s forceful throw from a close distance ricocheted off Germán’s glove and ended up out of play near the Seattle dugout.

domingo-german-ny-yankees — (AP Photo/Noah K. Murray)

Germán was held responsible for an error, enabling Suárez to cross the plate and score. The game encountered a 10-minute delay as the umpires deliberated on a challenge raised by Seattle regarding the appropriate placement of Ford on the field.

Ford was positioned on third base and successfully crossed home plate on José Caballero’s sacrifice fly. Adding to the Yankees’ woes, first baseman Anthony Rizzo made another error later in the same inning.

Hernández and Raleigh provided a much-needed respite by launching consecutive solo home runs with just one out in the fourth inning, leading to the removal of Germán from the game. Germán, who surrendered a personal record of 10 runs, eight of which were earned, along with eight hits, could only endure 3 1/3 innings on the mound. His pitch count reached 93 as his ERA skyrocketed to 5.10.

The right-hander endured his second consecutive disastrous performance, following a previous outing in which he allowed seven runs and seven hits in just two innings last Friday in Boston. Prior to these struggles, he had maintained a commendable 3.49 ERA, making the recent downturn all the more disappointing.

In a surprising turn of events, reserve utilityman Isiah Kiner-Falefa took the mound for the Yankees in the ninth inning and delivered a flawless performance, striking out Suárez with a well-placed 79 mph fastball. However, Kiner-Falefa didn’t stop there. In the bottom half of the inning, he showcased his versatility by smashing a two-run homer, further adding to the intrigue of the game.

In his fourth major league start, Woo found himself in the fortunate position of being given a comfortable 4-0 lead even before throwing his first pitch. However, his bid for a no-hitter was thwarted when Gleyber Torres managed to produce a clean single to right field with one out in the sixth inning, earning New York’s first hit of the game. The crowd of 42,440 responded with a sarcastic Bronx cheer, and Woo couldn’t hide his visible disappointment at the turn of events.

Rizzo unleashed a well-struck shot on the very next pitch, sending the ball soaring towards the top of the right-field fence. The impact resulted in a single, ultimately bringing an end to the right-hander’s time on the mound for the night.

UP NEXT

The New York Yankees will deploy right-handed pitcher Clarke Schmidt (2-6, 4.65 ERA) on Friday night as they welcome the Texas Rangers, who possess the most prolific offense in the major leagues. Schmidt enters the game with an impressive 2.56 ERA in his last six starts, showcasing his recent form. On the opposing side, the Texas Rangers will rely on right-handed pitcher Dane Dunning (6-1, 2.78 ERA) to take the mound.

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