In a way, the game was unremarkable, yet another quiet loss to a division rival. The Yankees are not a playoff team, and this game showed it. But this game was so much more.

First and foremost, this was the final game of Mark Teixeira’s career. Tex finished as the fifth-best homer-hitting switch-hitter (hyphens!) of all time. He finished with 37 career WARP, 409 home runs, and five Gold Gloves on his mantle. He has the most home runs in the new Yankee Stadium. The second half of Teixeira’s tenure in pinstripes was frustrating at times due to his injury issues, but there is no denying that he is a huge reason why the 2009 championship happened, and that he had a marvelous career. His affable presence endeared him to his teammates and to fans everywhere. For a moment last year, it seemed that the old Teixeira was back. He and Alex Rodriguez found the fountain of youth, and pushed the Yankees towards the playoffs until they could no more. The Wild Card game against the Astros was painful, but the Yankees only got there in the first place because of Rodriguez and Teixeira.

The Yankees did not make the postseason this year. They fell short, felled even as they put the finishing touches on a sweep of the first place Red Sox. New York was so stagnant for so long, and then found life once they shipped out their stars and handed the keys to the car to youngsters and rookies. But it was always a fool’s errand. The hole was too deep, and the rope to climb out too short.

That doesn’t mean that the season was remarkable in its own special way. There was tangible progress made here. We were finally, after years upon years of waiting, introduced to Sanchez. He may very well win the Rookie of the Year Award. We met Aaron Judge and Tyler Austin, Luis Cessa and Chad Green. The middle infield of Didi Gregorius and Starlin Castro came unto its own. Masahiro Tanaka contended for the Cy Young, and, improbably, CC Sabathia finished the season with an ERA under four.

And while much-loved stars were lost to other teams at the end of July, the next wave of Yankees was brought into the fold. Clint Frazier and Gleyber Torres will hopefully suit up in pinstripes one day. They’ll hopefully join Sanchez, Judge, Austin, and Greg Bird. This season was the end of an era. The next one is about to begin.

This was a bad season, a lost season, a squandered season. By some grace of the baseball gods, it was also a good one.

The Yankees did not make the playoffs in 2016. That’s okay. They’ll be back.

Sit back and enjoy the playoffs, Yankees fans. Just wait ’til next year.

Photo: Danny Wild / USA Today Sports

Once the hero finally reaches the oasis, a bubbling brook is found. Water. Actual water. Life. The hero drinks. And then the hero realizes that this is not water, but sand, and that the oasis is naught but a mirage.

This is the story of the 2016 Yankees. For months they wandered, and even gave up, before hope sprung eternal before their very eyes. The Yankees entered Boston with a small inkling of hope that if the cards fell just right, they could find themselves in a Wild Card game. They now leave town having been swept in four games and with Jacoby Ellsbury and Starlin Castro on the shelf. Despite the best efforts of Gary Sanchez and Masahiro Tanaka, the season is all but dead.

It has been for some time now. The Yankees had too many teams to leapfrog to make their crazy dream a reality, and too tough a schedule to go along with their patchwork roster. Even with all the shocking moments provided by Sanchez, it was too tall a mountain to climb.

Sunday night may have been the killing blow. The Yankees are not numerically eliminated just yet, but they are for all intents and purposes dead, laid to rest by two massive Hanley Ramirez home runs over the Green Monster. New York led 4-0 at one point, and lost 5-4. It was the latest in a series of large leads that were blown in this series.

And so ended the Yankees’ playoffs hopes, torn asunder. They had been as good as dead for months. They only now just realized it.

The Play: Hanley ends the shutout (.225 WPA)

This was the first of two massive shots off the bat of Hanley. The Yankees still had the lead, but the game was over at that moment.

Top Players

Yankees: Gary Sanchez (3-5, HR)
Red Sox: Hanley Ramirez (3-4, 2 HR), Mookie Betts (1-4, 2 incredible catches)

Notes

• Gary Sanchez now has 16 home runs, which, yeah, sure. Why not.
• Blake Parker entered the game when CC Sabathia was finally pulled (more on that later). He struck out David Ortiz on three pitches, and then stranded the runners he inherited. This guy isn’t bad.
• Sabathia pitched well until he didn’t. His throwing error may have cost the Yankees the game (although a first baseman that isn’t Billy Butler maybe salvages the play), and was left in for far too long. Girardi left him out there to face Jackie Bradley because of the lefty-lefty matchup, and it cost New York the lead.
• The Yankees finally beat up on Drew Pomeranz after he owned them in his previous two starts against them this year.
• In true Sunday Night Baseball tradition, the game took freaking forever.

The Quote

“The meaning of life is that it stops.” – Franz Kafka

The Highlight: Gary is scary

He’s not fair.

Up Next

The Yankees travel south to Tampa, which has never been a source of trouble before. It’ll be Michael Pineda in the first game against the Rays. Drew Smyly will oppose him.

Photo: Bob DeChiara / USA Today Sports

That quest took a step back on Sunday. The Yankees lost to Tampa Bay, 4-2, in a dry and somewhat soulless affair at Yankee Stadium. The game did not have thrilling moments or fascinating storylines beyond the fate of the streak, there were no truly outstanding plays. The game began, progressed, and ended.

Along the way, Luis Cessa gave up three home runs, and Tampa starter Matt Andriese became the latest in a long line of faceless pitchers to stymie the Yankees this year. Former Yankee Chase Whitley made his return from Tommy John surgery in a Rays uniform. The Yankees scored just two runs against these two men. They did not look like the offense that has gone gangbusters since the ascension of Gary Sanchez and his fellow rookies.

Winning streaks can’t last forever. However, at least on paper, this was a very winnable game. So it goes. Their playoff hopes, for now, are still alive.

The Play: Corey Dickerson mashes a two-run bomb (.200 WPA)

Dickerson has not been good this year. He seems to turn into Mickey Mantle when the Yankees are involved. That hardly seems fair.

Top Performers

Yankees: Brett Gardner (3-4, 2B, RBI, SB)
Rays: Corey Dickerson (3-4, 2R HR)

Notes

• Most of the games in the league haven’t finished as of this writing, but it looks like Baltimore will beat the Tigers, while Boston and Toronto are playing a wild one with nearly 20 runs on the board so far. That would give the Tigers the same record as the Yankees. The Astros will have to deal with the Cubs tonight.
• Luis Severino once again provided some quality relief innings today, as did Blake Parker. Severino may be destined for full-time relief work next year and Parker is looking like a keeper.
• Prior to the game, there was a nice ceremony to remember those killed in the terrorist attacks fifteen years ago today.
• Yes, Gary Sanchez got on base again.
• Logan Morrison strained his wrist on an awkward swing and was removed for the game. He’s likely done for the year for Tampa.

The Highlight: Headley is deadly

Chase Headley has really had a rather nice year. He’s now up to .257/.331/.398 with 14 home runs after being essentially dead offensive weight for the first month and change of the season. He’s playing some good defense, too. That’s a nice turnaround.

Up Next

The Dodgers will venture out east for old time’s sake and take on their old rivals in the Bronx. It’ll be top prospect Jose De Leon going for Los Angeles, while Bryan Mitchell will start for New York.

Photo: Andy Marlin / USA Today Sports

The Yankees are not dumb. They know this. They are, after all, professional baseball players. They did not get shut out on Sunday due to ignorance.

They were shut out because they simply could not barrel up Jhoulys Chacin and his 5.92 ERA, nor could they score against Deolis Guerra, JC Ramirez, or Fernando Salas. The Angels have the worst pitching staff in baseball according to DRA, and by a fair margin. The scores of the past two games reflected this. On Sunday, however, the Angels dispatched of the Yankees’ hitters with relative ease. New York managed just six hits, and just one of them went for extra bases.

New York’s pitching, however, was stellar. Chad Green allowed just one run in six innings of work, scattering five hits and a walk while striking out five. Green has had his ups and downs, and this is his second good start against a woeful offense, but the rookie clearly has promise. Given Luis Cessa’s excellent game on Saturday, the Justin Wilson trade is looking awfully good right now.

The Yankees will leave town with a series win, but the lone loss in Anaheim is a bitter one. This is the kind of game that the Yankees have simply had too many of this year, yet another dismal showing against a dismal pitcher.

The Play: Another scoring opportunity wasted ( -.139 WPA)

The Yankees had runners on the corners with one out in the third. The top of the order was up. Chacin was pitching. Time for runs, right?

Nope. Brett Gardner hit into a double play, and the inning ended. Cliff Pennington and Andrelton Simmons both did fine work in the middle infield here.

Top Performers

Yankees: Chad Green (6 IP, 1 ER, 5 H, 1 BB, 5 K)
Angels: Jhoulys Chacin (5.2 IP, 0 ER, 6 H, 1 BB, 4 K)

Notes

• Gary Sanchez showed once again why he should demand respect behind the plate when he gunned down Mike Trout on the basepaths. It wasn’t particularly close, either. Gary is, indeed, scary.
• Aaron Hicks went 2-3. He’s hitting over .300 in limited action since August 2nd.
• Didi Gregorius once again hit cleanup. That could be the start of a new trend. Or not. It’s something!
• The Tyler Clippard – Dellin Betances duo got a day off with the loss, so that’s good.

The Quote

“Pitcher’s pitch here.” – Al Leiter, just before Albert Pujols demolished a baseball. Here’s what happened:

The Highlights: Ellsbury commits highway robbery

On Saturday, it was Brett Gardner. On Sunday, it was Jacoby Ellsbury. Both of them were damn good catches.

Up Next

It’s another late-night game for the Yankees fans on the east coast. The Bombers travel up to Seattle to take on the surging Mariners, and it’ll be Michael Pineda against his old team in the opener. Cody Martin will start for Seattle.

Photo: Kevin Kuo; Videos: MLBAM

The Yankees and Rodriguez announced on Sunday morning that the slugger will be released following Friday’s game against Tampa Bay, and will stay with the team as a special adviser and instructor. The decision was reached solely by owner Hal Steinbrenner and Rodriguez, without input from (and seemingly without any heads-up given to) Brian Cashman and Joe Girardi.

Rodriguez’s tenure with the Yankees has been nothing if not eventful. Twelve of his 22 years in the big leagues have been spent in New York, and over that time he won two of this three MVP awards and made the All-Star team like clockwork. His titanic effort in the 2009 playoffs almost singlehandedly delivered the Yankees a World Series title.

Yet whether it was PEDs, or Madonna or the Manhattan Madame, A-Rod always had a knack for getting just as much ink for events that took place off the field as those that took place on it. His journeys into the seemingly bizarre and aloof grow larger and larger in the mind as memories of his laughable dominance of the sport fade. Gone is the gangly but strong teenage shortstop who was drafted first overall by the Mariners who cracked the big leagues at 18, replaced by a burnt-out shell of a contentious superstar.

He should have been everything the game could have dreamed of. In a way, he was. A-Rod was handsome and fabulously talented. He was a Yankee, the best player on the best team. But for some reason, it never happened. A-Rod was never the face, yet he was never truly the heel, either. He wasn’t Roger Clemens or Barry Bonds, but he never found the magic elixir for post-steroid adoration like Nelson Cruz, Bartolo Colon or David Ortiz did, either.

The production on the field was never an issue. Through 1506 games in pinstripes, A-Rod has hit .284/.378/.523. 351 of his 696 home runs have come as a Yankee, along with passable defense at a position he was forced to learn because an inferior defender refused to vacate his native shortstop.

With that production came an inescapable combination of the ego that comes with being anointed an athletics savant at a young age and a hungry, gnawing insecurity. The talent, try as it might, could not hide the personal imperfections of Rodriguez. In a way, it exacerbated them. The insecurities and pressures from his fellow players and from himself drove him to the steroids. His desire for unimpeachable greatness and for victory drove him to seemingly mad decisions and acts. It turned the media against him. It turned the league, who for so long had needed a far-reaching and global star not named Griffey or Jeter, to hound and hunt him. It was Rodriguez who served the longest PED suspension in league history, one which was handed down outside of the parameters of the established policy for such matters.

It was all of this that made his straight-laced boy scout return to baseball in 2015 so surreal. The scandal and outrage never manifested outside of the spirited boos heard at every ballpark outside of the Bronx when he came to the plate. A year away from the game had changed A-Rod, or at least it had changed his public face. Any candid photos from out in public usually involved the Yankee DH going somewhere with his young daughters. Somehow, he managed to hit 33 home runs in the same season that he celebrated his 40th birthday.

That same success is nowhere to be found this year. A-Rod has struggled to a ghastly .216 TAv in 234 plate appearances. Lately, it hasn’t been a question of what pitches he’s getting fooled on, but what he’s actually been able to connect with. The once-mighty slugger has been cowed by even the most pedestrian of pitchers.

And so, on Friday, A-Rod will don the pinstripes for one last ride. He may very well start some of, if not all three games in Boston, in a desperate rush to hit four final home runs and end his career at the nice round figure of 700. Then, he’ll be gone.

At one point in time it would have been curious to think of a post-Rodriguez Yankees. Here was a man who so perfectly encapsulated what the mid-2000’s teams were about. It was Rodriguez, not Derek Jeter, who was villainous, high-octane, ‘roided-up and endlessly overpaid. Jeter had the smile and the public relations instincts of a seasoned politician. A-Rod slapped the ball out of Bronson Arroyo’s glove, dated Cameron Diaz and became a news item in the midst of a World Series that he wasn’t even involved with.

That changed in the Yankees’ very own Year Without A Santa Claus in 2014. The only source of drama in 2014 was whether or not Cashman could patch his parboiled roster into a playoff team (he couldn’t). And yet, when Rodriguez did return the next year… nothing happened.

From a dramatics standpoint, life without A-Rod has been a fact for two and a half years. There is no great heel to be found on the Yankees. For most Yankees fans, the biggest heels they have in their lives these days are Jacoby Ellsbury’s contract and Greg Bird’s labrum. A-Rod is more of a team grandfather and baseball sage than a skulking figure with a syringe in the shadows.

What a loss of A-Rod does represent, however, is the severing of the last connection to the mid-2000’s super-teams, and another nail in the coffin of the days of The Boss. Brett Gardner will now be the longest-tenured Yankee, and the final man on left on the team who played in the old Yankee Stadium. Rodriguez is the latest Yankee casualty to Father Time and Cashman’s ruthless culling of the older big-money Yankees. He has claimed Mark Teixeira and Carlos Beltran already, and he will claim CC Sabathia next year. Do not be mistaken, as the team will surely begin to buy again, perhaps as early as this winter. It’s hard to imagine Steinbrenner resisting the temptation of dressing Kenley Jansen in pinstripes. But for now, youth is the flavor du jour.

A-Rod’s feel-good redemption story ending may very well give way to the promotion of Aaron Judge, who will be one of the faces of the next generation of Yankees. Gary Sanchez is already in the Bronx, already starting behind the plate, and already throwing out runners left and right. The trade of Carlos Beltran and the vacation of Rodriguez’s 40-man roster spot opens the door for Judge to step in and taste the big leagues for the first time.

And Rodriguez will help guide Judge and his fellow prospects up to the Show. Once the game on Friday comes to an end, A-Rod will traverse the minor leagues and serve as a sage elder to the cream of the crop of Yankees prospects. Given how much he helped Didi Gregorius grow into being a full-time shortstop and hitter, it’s exciting to think of him working with young talents such as Jorge Mateo and Gleyber Torres. A-Rod is one of the greatest hitters to ever live, and has spent his entire adult life in baseball. He was still growing up when he transcended the superstar title, and has an exceptional mind for the game.

This is a role perfectly suited for him. There is little doubt that A-Rod will thrive on the other side of the game. He has given everything that he can as a player. And though the door is not completely closed on him suiting up one more time (he hasn’t officially retired as a player), the development of Alex Rodriguez: Elder Statesman will be amusing indeed to watch.

As recently as 2014, it would have been unthinkable to imagine that the Yankees would keep Rodriguez on in such a capacity once he was through with playing for them. Heel A-Rod is gone, blown away on the winds of change. In a way, though, he was never really there. A-Rod was never Lenny Dykstra, or Barry Bonds, or Ty Cobb. His problem was that he wasn’t David Ortiz. He couldn’t make the people love him and forget his transgressions against the game. He couldn’t stop himself from going back to that destructive crutch, and the game he had mastered even before he touched the drugs hated him for it, and rightfully so.

Citizen A-Rod will be something we’ve never seen before, because he hid so well during his year away from the game. Friday will be his last day as a player for the Yankees. Saturday will be the first day of the rest of his life. The next chapter in the life of Alex Rodriguez is about to begin, and with it begins the next chapter for the Yankees.

Photo: Andy Marlin / USA Today Sports

They did just that, and won, too. New York defeated Cleveland 3-1 behind a strong six-inning, one-run, eight-strikeout effort from Masahiro Tanaka. The Yankees’ ace stymied Cleveland batters for his entire outing with a strong mix of breaking pitches, and the one run scored after he had exited the game. Tanaka like could have completed an additional inning had it not been for a twelve-pitch at-bat from Lonnie Chisenhall that ate at his pitch count.

On offense, the Yankees opened with a triple from Brett Gardner and a sac fly from Jacoby Ellsbury gave the Yankees the lead in the first, and they never relinquished it. A home run from Didi Gregorius and an opposite-field double from Mark Teixeira would supply the other two runs.

A relief trio of a resurgent Adam Warren, Tyler Clippard and Dellin Betances locked down the victory for the Yankees. They now sit at 56-55, one game over .500, and will begin A-Rod’s ever so brief and fleeting farewell tour.

The Play: Didi Gregorius goes yard (+ .101 WPA)

The short porch giveth, and the short porch taketh away. This time, it gave. It just so happened to be Didi’s bobblehead day, too.

Top Performers

Yankees: Masahiro Tanaka (6 IP, 1 ER 6 H, 8 K, 0 BB)
Indians: Roberto Perez (2-3, 2B, 1 RBI)

Notes

• Noted Yankee killer Mike Napoli was ejected from the game for arguing balls and strikes. Sad!
• After Rob Refsnyder singled to lead off the second, Cleveland starter Carlos Carrasco seemed to be rather obsessed with throwing over to first base to check on him. The Tribe’s pitching coach had to come out to tell him to knock it off. Carrasco would go on to strike out the side.
• Adam Warren has yet to allow a run since returning to the Yankees. He inherited Tanaka’s runner, who eventually scored, but none of his own.
• Mark Teixeira’s opposite-field double continued a trend that’s seen the slugger drive the ball the other way more often while batting left-handed. That’s neat.
• Per Jon Heyman, Brian McCann has cleared waivers and can now be traded to any team. Cleveland is in need of a catcher, especially after having Jonathan Lucroy yanked away from under their nose. Hmmm…

The Highlight: Jacoby Ellsbury commits a TOOTBLAN for the ages

Oh, Jake, Buddy. No. Just… no.

Up Next

The Yankees are off on Monday, and then they’ll fly up to Boston for three with the Red Sox. Hopefully A-Rod will be in the lineup. Luis Severino and Rick Porcello will be the starters in the opener.

Photo: Andy Marlin/USA Today Sports

The baseball details of that trade can be found here. What matters the most, though, is not how good Clint Frazier is at baseball, or how good Andrew Miller is. It’s that Hal Steinbrenner and the Yankees brass saw fit to ship out an important asset for a massive return, and that they recognized that the Yankees aren’t going anywhere.

Take Sunday’s game for example. The Yankees lost 5-3, once again failing to put up anything resembling a dangerous offensive threat. Rookie starter Blake Snell, one of the best pitching prospects in all of baseball, struck out nine Yankees in 5 1/3 innings. The lefty was a little wild, but still held the New York off-balance for his whole outing. Meanwhile, Michael Pineda surrendered five earned runs while striking out eight over six innings of work.

Once again at .500, the fate of the 2016 Yankees is sealed. For the first time in nearly a generation, the team is selling, and will not actively attempt to contend for the playoffs.

Welcome to the new reality.

The Play: Didi Gregorius grounds into an inning-ending double play (-.180 WPA)

The Yankees had the bases loaded here, and then Didi came up short. It felt like a microcosm of the entire season.

Top Performers

Yankees: Brett Gardner (2-4, BB)
Rays: Corey Dickerson (2-3, 2B, BB, R)

Notes

• Today was the first time that Snell faced a big league team for the second time. He had faced the Yankees in April in his major league debut.
• Alex Rodriguez pinch-hit for Aaron Hicks in the ninth inning and looked absolutely feeble against Alex Colome. Colome certainly isn’t an easy pitcher to hit against, but it wasn’t pretty.
• Carlos Beltran went deep for two of the Yankees’ three runs. It was the only New York extra-base hit, and it may be Beltran’s last homer in a Yankee uniform.
• It was surprising to see Beltran in the lineup, given his trade candidacy and older age. A pulled hamstring the day before the deadline would not have been a good look.
• Luis Severino came on in relief of Pineda and threw two scoreless innings. Severino was throwing exceptionally hard and it’s easy to see why many talent evaluators think his destiny lies in the bullpen.
• Joe Girardi confirmed before the game that Dellin Betances would be the closer going forward.

The Quote

“[He’ll] show up for the National Anthem in a dirty uniform.” – Brian Cashman, on new Yankees top prospect Clint Frazier.

The Highlight: Beltran obliterates a poor, unsuspecting baseball

Oh my. If this is it for Beltran as a Yankee, it was certainly fun. Whoever gets him will be quite pleased.

Up Next

It’s time to Meet the Mets! The Yankees ship out for the untamed wilds of Queens to take on the Amazin’s for two, before returning to the Bronx for two more with the crosstown rivals. CC Sabathia and Logan Verrett will face off in a pitching duel for the ages on Monday night, well after the 4 p.m. trade deadline. Any more moves that the Yankees make will happen before game time.

Photo: Kim Klement / USA Today Sports

Clippard, who came up with the Yankees, has long been a respected setup man, with most of his success coming with the Nationals. After a brief stint with the Mets last year, Clippard signed a two-year deal with the Diamondbacks over the winter. It hasn’t exactly gone according to plan. Clippard is allowing hits and home runs at a higher frequency this year, although his strikeout rate has spiked as well. DRA pegs him at a 3.55, which isn’t awful at all. Clippard has historically been a prominent pop-up guy, and it’s possible he could regress to that. It’s also possible that at 31, his decline is here.

Regardless, Clippard’s purpose with the Yankees is to take up innings out of the bullpen. He’s a passable setup man, especially with Chad Green and Luis Severino potentially being just as good in relief roles. Clippard was added to give Joe Girardi a second tested option in the late innings besides Betances. Girardi is known to have a definite circle of trust with his relievers, and often hesitates to go outside of that group in tight situations and in the late innings. Clippard, perhaps most importantly, instantly cuts down the number of two-inning outings that Betances will be facing going forward. Betances has already surpassed 50 innings this year, and had definite fall-offs in quality towards the ends of the past two seasons. The fewer extraneous innings that Betances has to pitch, the better.

Going the other way to Arizona is Campos, a right-handed pitching prospect. Vincente, formerly known as Jose, was acquired many moons ago in the infamous Jesus Montero – Michael Pineda trade. He’s suffered many an injury since then, including to his elbow, but has finally found sustained playing time in 2016. He had pitched all the way from High-A Tampa up to Triple-A Scranton. In total, Campos has pitched 121 innings between the three levels, putting together a 3.20 ERA. He’s struck out 105 and walked 38. Those are some pretty numbers, but Campos isn’t necessarily viewed as anything more than a back-end starter at this point, with a likely future in the bullpen because of his injury history. Campos is a lottery ticket, and a fitting return for Clippard.

Clippard is under contract for 2017 for $4.25 million. The Yankees will likely go shopping on the free agent market for relievers (closers such as Kenley Jansen, Mark Melancon and Chapman will all be available), but Clippard will be a good complimentary piece if he isn’t flipped over the winter. Given the success of Green and the return of Adam Warren, the Yankees should once again have a solid bullpen in 2017.

Photo: Kelley L. Cox / USA Today Sports

Nathan Eovaldi has been maddeningly inconsistent this season. He oscillates between brilliance and fiery inferno, sometimes in the course of a single game or inning. There was no oscillation on Sunday. On a day where the Yankees badly needed length from their starter due to the unavailability of Dellin Betances, Andrew Miller and Aroldis Chapman, Eovaldi provided just that. The big right-hander tossed 6.2 innings of two-run ball, striking out six and scattering seven hits. It was a far cry from the erratic outings that Eovaldi has recently had. Showings like this are why the Yankees traded for him.

The offense, meanwhile, touched Jeff Samardzija up for five runs, including homers from Carlos Beltran and Mark Teixeira, and a ground rule double from Didi Gregorius. Samardzija failed to escape the sixth inning, and struck out just three Yankees. That would be all the offense that New York would need for a win.

The Play: Beltran Goes Yard (+ .105 WPA)

Beltran poked this one just over the short porch in right field. It counts!

Top Performers

Yankees: Nathan Eovaldi (6.2 IP, 7 H, 6 K, 2 BB, 2 ER)
Giants: Buster Posey (2-4, 2 RBI)

Notes

• Both of Eovaldi’s runs scored after he had been lifted from the game. Chasen Shreve was brought in to face Brandon Belt and walked him. Then Chad Green allowed a two-out single to Posey, and the runs were charged to Eovaldi. Green would carry the game to the end.
• Aroldis Chapman is still a Yankee after reports surfaced Saturday night that a trade was close.
• Former Yankee George Kontos appeared in relief of Samardzija and threw 2.1 perfect innings.
• Teixeira’s home run went out to the deepest part of the Yankee bullpen, which is quite a ways away. If he gets his strength back, it could be a massive boon to the Yankees.
• On a homestand where they had to play the Red Sox, Orioles and Giants, the Yankees went 6-4. They’re 4.5 games out of a Wild Card spot.

The Highlight: The Ol’ 4-1-5 Double Play

Just like they drew it up. According to the YES broadcast, this was the first 4-1-5 double play in recorded Yankees history. You see something new every time you go to the ballpark, don’t you?

Up Next

It’s on to Houston to take on the Astros, one of the teams ahead of New York in the Wild Card race. Michael Pineda will be opposed by Dallas Keuchel. Alex Bregman, ranked by BP as the 4th best prospect in all of baseball, will make his debut for Houston.

Photo: Brad Penner/USA Today Sports; Video: MLBAM

Instead, the Yankees staved off oblivion for at least another day with a 3-1 win over Boston. Masahiro Tanaka lead the way with six brilliant innings in which he struck out seven and allowed just three hits, one of which was a screaming home run down the left field line by Dustin Pedroia in the first inning. Once that was out of the way, the Boston hitters looked woefully off-balance for the rest of the night. The Dellin Betances – Andrew Miller – Aroldis Chapman triumvirate did their thing, and that was the ballgame.

The New York runs all came in the bottom of the fourth. A little rally that started with a Didi Gregorius (who else?) hit resulted in RBI’s from Starlin Castro, Austin Romine and Jacoby Ellsbury. David Price, who seemed to have recently found his groove for the Red Sox, struck out just one batter over a shaky outing in which he could not escape the sixth inning. The lefty ace struck out just one batter.

It was not a dominating win for the Yankees by any stretch of the imagination, but one that they were due for. It’s a win that staves off what is likely the inevitable, a win that serves as the calm before the storm of Oriole dingers and Madison Bumgarner strikeouts. An end will come for the Yankees. They’re too far gone now, and their schedule is rife with impending doom. For once they’re through with Baltimore and San Francisco, they will fly to meet the surging Astros.

For now, it was a feel-good win to take one’s mind off the fate of all fools and middling .500 teams in the harsh AL East. It was a vintage Tanaka performance, and a dominating showing by a well-rested bullpen.

It was a win. It’s just too bad that the Yankees have lost more than they’ve won.

The Play: Starlin Doubles in Didi (+.156 WPA)

The double that brought home the Yankees’ first run. Two more would score in the inning. Runs! Runs are good!

Top Performers

Yankees: Masahiro Tanaka (6 IP, 7 K, 1 BB, 3 H, 1 HR)
Red Sox: Dustin Pedroia (1-4, HR, K)

The Highlight: Tanaka bends space-time to strike out Bradley

Seriously, look at the movement on that pitch. What the hell, man. I’m scared.

Up Next

The Orioles roll into town for four games. Kevin Gausman will face Ivan Nova, who will do his best to not allow three home runs to Chris Davis and Mark Trumbo.

Photo: Brad Penner/USA Today Sports; Videos: MLBAM