The New York Yankees squandered a late lead in Friday’s 12-5 series-opening loss to the Philadelphia Phillies, exposing clear bullpen concerns just days before the MLB trade deadline.
Will Warren delivered a solid outing, giving New York 5.2 innings of two-run ball with seven strikeouts. Giancarlo Stanton’s go-ahead solo home run in the sixth put the Yankees ahead 3-2, but things unraveled quickly from there. Tim Hill got out of the sixth, but the bullpen fell apart in the seventh.
After a critical throwing error by Paul Goldschmidt allowed the tying run to score, reliever Luke Weaver gave up a three-run homer to J.T. Realmuto, putting Philadelphia ahead 6-3. Though the Yankees responded with two runs in the bottom half to make it 6-5, the momentum didn’t last.
Ian Hamilton gave up a three-run shot to Kyle Schwarber, his second home run of the night, to extend the Phillies’ lead to 9-5. In the ninth, Scott Effross allowed four more runs with two outs, sealing a frustrating loss.
Cody Bellinger and Austin Wells added solo home runs in the loss.
The Yankees (56-47) will try to bounce back Saturday when Marcus Stroman takes the mound against Ranger Suárez. The first pitch is set for 1:05 p.m.
Kyle leads sports coverage and hosts the Concrete Jungle podcast. Have a lead or question? Send it to [email protected].