Category: Baseball

This year’s American League Division Series have been significantly entertaining. And more than a little jarring.

The Tampa Bay Rays and Chicago White Sox are a combined 4-0, both one win away from advancing to the AL Championship Series, and both answering questions about their viability in a most voracious fashion.

And they’re doing it their way, the White Sox with an unprecedented pitching plan and the Rays suffocating the New York Yankees in every facet of the game.

As the teams charter their way to New York and Chicago, here’s five takeaways from a day that saw the Cleveland Guardians and New York Yankees pushed to the brink:

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- For a moment, before all the accountability cliches started flowing for the cameras in the Yankees' clubhouse, Cam Schlittler was blunt.

“I’ll be the first one to say that I didn’t do my job,” the 25-year-old ace said. “But it didn’t seem like we really showed up today.”

Given the chance to double down later, Schlittler wouldn’t do it.

“The guys work their asses off,” he explained.

“That’s baseball,” he reiterated.

He wasn’t good enough, either, of course.

But in reality, the Yankees played such historically porous defense Monday that they rendered their most dominant playoff ace in a generation completely irrelevant with several defensive misplays including four errors.

At one point, they set the record for most errors in a single Yankee playoff game with five -- only to have the fifth error overturned by the official scorer.

“Obviously, a really rough night to say the least for us,” manager Aaron Boone said. “We've got to get over it. We've responded all year to difficult times, and we've got to do that again. We've got to get ourselves up off the mat.”

Boone said he would address the players when they were settled on the plane back to New York early Tuesday morning. At times in describing what happened, he seemed lost for words, though he always found his way back to “we got to get over it, though. As simple as that.”

What will be difficult to get over is that the Yankees’ inability cost them the game they seemed most certain to win, one in which Schlittler started and his fellow playoff savant, Ben Rice, homered twice.

Playoff games include plenty of error-filled innings and misplays that end up ending seasons. But what the Yankees did Monday was not an example of natural ebb and flow.

Game 2 was a meltdown, the kind that can only be explained by something other than pure physical error -- something like when Aaron Judge dropped a fly ball in Game 5 of the 2024 World Series, for example. Twice can be coincidence, but it sure feels like a trend.

“The guys and I, we work hard. We go out there every day. We take our ground balls and we take them very seriously,” Jazz Chisholm Jr. said. “… Especially certain guys that are defensive specialists, some of the best defenders I’ve ever played with are playing. So for me, it hurts us a little more than you’d think.”

Monday’s lineup was not the Yankees’ best defensive alignment, but it hardly lined up as their worst either.

In fact, even after nearly being no-hit two nights ago, Boone decided to start Ryan McMahon in a platoon matchup against Freddy Peralta rather than start versatile Jose Caballero at third base or test novice Anthony Volpe there on unfamiliar turf. McMahon is an elite defender, which is why he starts there more often than not.

But when Yandy Diaz led off the game with a chopper his way, McMahon simply missed the easy hop, then looked as surprised as everyone else to discover he somehow had not caught it. More topspin than he thought, he said later.

Suddenly, Schlittler was in the stretch. Inevitably, he was not in peak rhythm. He was not the only one.

After a Jonathan Aranda single, Junior Caminero hit a groundball that George Lombard Jr. chased down up the middle. He flipped the ball to Chisholm, who caught it falling over second base and decided to throw to first base in the process. It bounced away.

Two batters later, Chisholm fielded a routine groundball that could have been a double play. He threw it high to Lombard cringing when he let go as if he wished he could pull it right back. The throw cost them a double play.

In between those two Chisholm plays, Austin Wells was called for catcher’s interference on a pitch that would have been strike three. That the Rays scored just one run during what ended as a three-error first inning was a relative miracle, one due in part to Schlittler’s composure.

Schlittler has been historically unflappable in big games during his first two postseasons. He is as calm as they come, and more confident than most.

Asked before the game if he had ever seen Schlittler doubt himself, for example, center fielder Trent Grisham did not hesitate.

“No,” he said simply. “I have not.”

But the Schlittler who found himself in the middle of a teamwide defensive meltdown looked as uncomfortable as he ever has in a game this important.

His velocity was not quite where it was in his Wild Card start. He searched for his fastball command, missing so badly up and inside to Diaz at one point in the second that he walked up to Diaz to talk about it afterward.

Everyone seemed to decide it had been completely accidental. After all, Schlittler had been missing wide with his fastball, as well.

Even so, he survived the second inning, then the third, then the fourth. A Rice homer meant the game was tied when he took the mound to start the fifth inning. Then the Yankees knocked their ace out of the game.

First, Spencer Jones got a late jump on a line drive to right. Caminero doubled. A soft ground ball to Chisholm (no one’s fault) scored a run. A chopper to Lombard -- originally ruled an error, eventually ruled a fielder's choice -- scored another. Both plays would have required some heroics.

Too often, the Yankees could not do the basics.

“[Cam’s] not wrong. Obviously, wasn’t ideal from the start. We didn’t make some plays we usually make, kind of happened throughout the game,” Lombard said. “Just made it harder for ourselves.”

Lombard threw a ball wide of first later that inning, so two runs scored on Richie Palacios’ single up the middle.

When it was all said and done, the Yankees had broken an ignominious team record and spurred Boone to try Brent Headrick to stop their bleeding. Schlittler finished after allowing four runs (two earned) on six hits in 4.1 innings.

The Rays applied their trademark pressure. The Yankees could not withstand it.

“I think [Cam’s] just throwing a lot more pitches than he should have been throwing. I think it's maybe a different story there if we take care of the ball and he's at 30 pitches or 25, 30 pitches instead after the first two and gets in a rhythm and he's in a groove,” Boone said. “Kind of found himself in trouble a lot tonight, not by his own doing.”

Schlittler would be available to pitch Game 5 on Saturday if the Yankees can force it, but they will need to win two games to do that. Unfortunately for the Yankees, Monday’s game -- like any game started by Schlittler, even when he is not at his best -- was supposed to be one of the games they could pencil in as a win.

Though Schlittler did not say so, it was his defense that beat him Monday.

“I’m not disappointed in our defense. I’m not disappointed in our offense,” Schlittler said. “Really just disappointed in myself. That’s baseball and those things are going to happen. I’ve got to be able to work through those. I wasn’t able to do that today.”

The Yankees’ dreadful defense in Game 2 is certainly the headlining woe. It’s the one that forced Cam Schlittler to throw stress-laden pitches in the first inning that doubtless impacted the rest of his outing. And it’s the one that helped the Rays to three unearned runs.

But in the wake of the Yankees’ 5-2 loss Monday night at Tropicana Field, there’s another culprit also pushing them toward elimination:

We need to talk about the offense.

It’s every Yankee fan’s October nightmare: the pinstriped bats have gone cold and there’s no Aaron Judge coming to save them, at least in this series. He’s out with a calf injury. After a splurge against the fading Red Sox in the Wild Card Series, the Bronx Bombers have turned that nickname into a punch line of sorts in this best-of-five AL Division Series against Tampa Bay.

“Whatever it takes, we’ve got to do it offensively and we’ve gotta be able to score some runs and do a better job of preventing (them,)” Aaron Boone said in the postgame news conference room.

It can only get better, right? In two games against the Rays, the Yankees have scored exactly twice. Both runs came in Game 2, when Ben Rice slammed two solo home runs. They have all of five hits -- Rice’s home runs, two doubles by Austin Wells and a single by Cody Bellinger. They are 5-for-58 in the series (.086) with a .145 on-base percentage, .224 slugging and .369 OPS.

It’s the fewest hits and fewest runs of any team in Division Series play. The Yankees, who drew the eighth-most walks in baseball during the regular season, aren’t even doing that -- they have two walks in each game so far.

They have just four plate appearances with runners in scoring position in the series and are 0-for-2 with two walks.

Credit where it’s due -- the Rays are pitching very well, from Drew Rasmussen in Game 1 to Freddy Peralta and the bullpen in Game 2.

And that is certainly part of the reason why, when they’ve had chances against Tampa Bay, the Yankees have missed. Wells foolishly tried to stretch an easy double into a triple in Game 1 and was easily thrown out, burying the only Yankee scoring chance against Rasmussen.

In Game 2, Bellinger, who batted .340 with runners in scoring position during the season and hit a big home run in the Boston series, came up with the bases loaded in the fifth inning and mashed a ball to center. It traveled 405 feet, but it was nothing more than a loud out, a ball with an expected batting average, per Statcast, of .760 that was caught on the warning track.

Boone noted that Bellinger’s ball, a few feet either way, could’ve been a bases-clearing, series-changing double. And it was just one of six balls the Yankees hit 100-plus mph in Game 2, two fewer than the Rays.

“I thought we started to put together some really good at-bats, especially in the fifth inning where we chased Peralta and Belli puts a good swing on it, hits it to the fence,” Boone said. “That's unfortunate there.”

Rice, though, is doing real damage. He has driven in eight of the 20 runs the Yankees have scored in the postseason and he has four home runs, which leads all playoff hitters. He’s the first Yankee to have more than one multi-homer game in the same postseason, according to Sarah Langs of MLB.com. He’s batting .467 with an 1.889 OPS.

The Yanks will need some teammates to join him to get back in this series. It’s already a daunting assignment: According to Langs, in all best-of-five postseason series, teams that go up, 2-0, win 89 percent of the time (83-of-93). In the current 2-2-1 home format, the team that wins the first two at home wins the series 92 percent of the time.

There’s a lot to clean up. The defense better be good Wednesday night in Game 3 with groundball artist Max Fried starting for the Yankees.

And Rice can’t be the only one raking, either. The Yankees haven’t shown they can score enough against the Rays.

Despite the defense failing Yankees starter Cam Schlittler in the first inning and again in the fourth inning with the offense scratching across just two runs on four hits, he took the blame for New York’s 5-2 loss in Game 2 of the ALDS to the Tampa Bay Rays on Monday night.

The right-hander didn’t exactly pitch poorly, and even did well to limit the damage to just one run in the first inning where the Yankees made three errors on the infield, but it was clear Schlittler wasn’t at his best during his 4.1 innings of work.

Perhaps it was the failure on defense to make plays all game, but it seemed like New York’s ace was under duress from the jump and was forced to throw high stress pitches every inning he was out on the mound. 

Of course, in the postseason, everything is heightened and more stressful than the regular season, especially when trailing in the series, but Schlittler was supposed to be the Yankees’ trump card against the Rays in the series and the 25-year-old was pulled in the fifth inning.

“I just didn’t have my stuff today,” he said. “Didn’t get great results, some timely hits there. Didn’t get through the fifth so it’s not good enough.”

After escaping the error-filled first inning by allowing just one run, the fifth inning was a different story for Schlittler. Once again, New York played sloppy defensively against Tampa Bay’s contact-first approach of putting the ball in play and seeing what happens.

George Lombard Jr. had two misplays in the inning, although only was officially called an error, and the Rays took full advantage by scoring four times in the inning to take a 5-1 lead.

“It was just one of those games where things kind of compiled and stacked up on top of each other,” the rookie said. “It wasn’t ideal and we put ourselves in a bad spot… They’re obviously a good team and they battle and they don’t let down, but we definitely didn’t help ourselves. Against a good team like that you can’t afford to make as many mistakes as we did.”

But if you ask Schlittler, who shut out the Boston Red Sox for 6.1 innings in Game 1 of the Wild Card Series at home last week, he should’ve been better.

“I’m not disappointed in our defense, I’m not disappointed in the offense, really just disappointed in myself,” he said. “Again, that’s baseball and those things are gonna happen, but I got to be able to work through those. I wasn’t able to do that today.”

Schlittler’s second postseason outing this year ended after 4.1 innings where he allowed four runs (two earned) on six hits and a walk while striking out just two after he struck out 10 against the Red Sox.

It wasn’t what he or the Yankees were expecting in such a crucial game, but Schlittler remains confident that New York can climb out of this hole it dug for itself starting on Wednesday night in Game 3.

“I’m confident, but we gotta get home tomorrow, get our work in and show up Wednesday," he said.

Freddy Peralta, the Rays' trade deadline acquisition from the Mets, was a challenge for the Yankees in Monday's ALDS matchup.

The right-hander allowed one run -- designated hitter Ben Rice's fourth-inning solo home run to lead off the fourth inning -- on three hits while striking out three and walking one in 4.2 innings of Tampa Bay's pivotal Game 2.

"I thought he threw the ball incredibly well," Rays manager Kevin Cash said of Peralta, who was perfect through his first three innings. "We were all super pleased with it, and it was a tough decision. I felt like the changeup started to work just off the edge enough where he wasn't able to get it in the zone. But early on, it was dominant fastball, dominant changeup. It's tough to nitpick anybody that goes through that lineup and gives up a solo homer. Very pleased with Freddy."

Peralta exited the game with runners on first and second base in the fifth inning after catcher Austin Wells' two-out double and third baseman Ryan McMahon's walk.

Left-hander Cam Booser replaced Peralta and walked Rice, loading the bases, before left fielder Cody Bellinger's deep fly ball to center field stranded the Yankees.

"I said that I wanted to finish the fifth because I was competing out there, and I always want to keep the ball," said Peralta, who exited after throwing 43 strikes on 66 pitches. "But I just wanted to give my best since the first pitch until whenever the decision with Cash comes to take me out of the game. I just was focused on giving the best of myself, 100 percent of myself, since the first pitch until the last one."

Peralta went 5-2 with a 3.25 ERA and 1.01 WHIP in 55.1 innings over 10 starts during his regular season with the Rays. He debuted for Tampa Bay Aug. 4.

"They've done it all year, just throwing strikes," said Rays left fielder Jonny DeLuca. "All of our starters are nasty. All of our pitching staff is nasty. Being able to play behind that, it's a good tempo, good rhythm. They're pounding the zone. It doesn't look fun to face them. They've been doing it all year and it's super fun to watch."

ST. PETERSBURG, FL – Ryan McMahon is one of the best defensive third basemen in baseball. The first ball hit to him in Game 2 shot up and got away, and the New York Yankees spent the rest of the night chasing it.

New York made four errors Monday, three on the first four batters, and lost 5-2 to the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. The Rays lead the best-of-five AL Division Series 2-0.

The Yankees dug this hole with their own gloves and bats.  

Three of the Rays' five runs were unearned. Cam Schlittler, the presumptive AL Cy Young winner, got 13 outs, the shortest postseason start of his career, and spent most of his night pitching with runners his defense put on base.

In the quiet Yankees clubhouse after the loss, Schlittler took responsibility.

"Obviously it starts with me," Schlittler said. "I'll be the first one to say that I didn't do my job, but it didn't seem like we really showed up today."

The offense without Aaron Judge on the roster because of a strained calf isn't bailing anybody out. The Yankees have scored two runs in two games and both of them were solo home runs by Ben Rice.

McMahon's error on Yandy Díaz started the unraveling Monday night.

Jonathan Aranda singled. Junior Caminero grounded to shortstop George Lombard Jr., who backhanded a flip to second for the force, and Jazz Chisholm Jr. tried to force the double play and threw it wide of first base. Díaz scored. Then the Rays challenged a missed catcher's interference call on Austin Wells and won.

"I'd probably still throw it, honestly," Chisholm said. "The play that was trying to be made (was the right one). I feel like I could've made an even better throw."

Four batters, three errors, one run.

Aaron Boone said he didn't necessarily have a problem with Chisholm going for two.

"We've got to play catch," Boone said. "It's the big leagues."

Oops! ... They did it again. And again. And again. And again.

The New York Yankees committed four errors in their 5-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays in Game 2 of the American League Divisional Series. Three of the errors came in the first inning of the matchup on Monday, Oct. 5 at Tropicana Field.

The first culprit was third baseman Ryan McMahon. Yandy Díaz tapped the ball and sent it McMahon's way, but it bounced and the defender couldn't grab it, committing the first error.

Two batters later, Junior Caminero hit a dribbler for a ground out that got out Jonathan Aranda. Jazz Chisholm Jr. attempted a quick turn to first base and overthrew Luis García Jr. for the second error.

Then, Liam Hicks was up to bat. When he swung at a pitch, catcher Austin Wells stuck his mitt out too far forward. Hicks' bat grazed the top of his mitt and Wells was called for catcher interference.

Yankees committed three errors, and almost a fourth, in the first inning tonight.

It's the first time in franchise history committing three errors in one inning of a postseason game. pic.twitter.com/jydGJrDBjP

— New York Post Sports (@nypostsports) October 6, 2026

And that's not all!

In the bottom of the fifth inning, Jonny DeLuca made contact and sent the ball into left field, where George Lombard Jr. scooped it up. The rookie threw the ball toward first base and it was his turn to overthrow García Jr. It was the fourth error of the game.

There was nearly another error earlier in the inning involving Lombard Jr., but it was ruled a fielder's choice.

George Lombard Jr. is the fourth Yankee to make an error tonight pic.twitter.com/jW6tkbN0i9

— Talkin' Yanks (@TalkinYanks) October 6, 2026

Ben Rice scored both of the Yankees' runs with two solo home runs. He hit one each in the fourth and eighth innings.

New York is now down 2-0 in the series and is on the brink of playoff elimination.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: See all 4 Yankees errors from Game 2 ALDS loss to Rays

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Aaron Boone kept the lineup intact from Game 1 — most notably keeping a struggling Ryan McMahon at third base — in part because he wanted “to prioritize the defense,” the Yankees manager said a couple of hours before Monday’s first pitch. 

It took two pitches from Cam Schlittler for that decision to backfire. 

McMahon made the first error, a drip that became a flood, in an embarrassing 5-2 loss in Game 2 to the Rays in which the Yankees defense was charged with four errors and probably should have been charged with more. 

“Not great. Not how you draw it up,” McMahon said of a first inning in which he booted a ball, Jazz Chisholm Jr. made an unwise decision to throw to first (which bounced past Luis García Jr.) after recording an out at second and Austin Wells was called for catcher’s interference, which added up to the first unearned run. 

The problems started on the second pitch Rays leadoff hitter Yandy Díaz saw, chopping a grounder toward McMahon. The normally sure-handed veteran, perhaps misjudging the springs on the Tropicana Field turf or an infield dirt that played fast, simply missed on his backhand attempt. 

“Just kicked up on me a little bit,” said McMahon, who watched the ball skitter past him and then raised his palms wondering what had just happened. 

McMahon did not make a second mistake in the field, but he also did not atone at the plate. He popped out in the third inning, managed a walk (that did not lead to a run) in the fifth and then was subbed out for pinch hitter Paul Goldschmidt in the eighth. 

In four postseason games, McMahon is 1-for-7 — the lone hit an infield single — with two walks and played despite entering the night 1-for-14 with three walks in his career against Tampa Bay starter Freddy Peralta. 

Asked about sticking with McMahon, Boone indicated that he considered starting Anthony Volpe at third base, but he didn’t want his second career start at the spot to be on the bouncy turf in a playoff game. Boone also insisted José Caballero was “very much in play” — and has been every day of the playoffs, he said — “but I just like his versatility and presence off the bench, too.” 

Caballero, a spark plug who had appeared in only one game this postseason before Monday (as a defensive replacement in Game 2 of the wild-card series), played the role of good soldier. 

“Everyone wants to be in there, but that’s why we have a manager and he’s the one making decisions,” Caballero said before entering as a defensive replacement at third base. “Just waiting on my time and trying to stay active and prepare for the moment that I get the call and try to help the team.” 

The Rays plan to start righty Nick Martinez in Game 3, which normally would mean the lefty-hitting McMahon would get the nod. 

Boone has another decision to make. 

“Frustration. Maybe a little bit of anger in there,” McMahon said about the mood of the team. “But … the series isn’t over yet.”

The Yankees' backs are against the wall after Monday's 5-2 ALDS Game 2 loss at the Tampa Bay Rays.

"We didn't get it done," said left fielder Cody Bellinger, whose bases-loaded flyout to deep center field ended the fifth inning and kept the game tied at 1-1. "We had opportunities."

New York committed four errors while ace right-hander Cam Schlittler did not have his best stuff.

"These guys work their asses off all year to get to a position like today," said Schlittler, who allowed four runs (two earned) on six hits while striking out two and walking one in 4.1 innings pitched. "We expect a lot out of each other. It's been great all year, but we just didn't play our brand of baseball and I know we can play better baseball than that and that starts with me on the mound. We've got to flush it and get ready for Wednesday."

The best-of-five series heads to Yankee Stadium for Wednesday's 8 p.m. Game 3 with left-hander Max Fried set as the Yankees' starting pitcher.

"An opportunity to do something great," said New York manager Aaron Boone. "But it starts one play, one inning at a time. We can't play like that and expect to win, so we've got to come out Wednesday night -- everything's on the line, it's obviously all hands on deck and we've got to try and get one and then go from there.

"We're capable of doing it. This team has been really good at picking themselves up all year. We've faced some really tough moments. Talked about them having a lot of grit -- they've had that all year. We need to find it right now."

Third baseman Ryan McMahon echoed Boone's message as the Yankees exit Tropicana Field in an 0-2 hole.

"It hasn't been won yet," McMahon said. "We'll see that. We'll regroup, respect the loss. Everybody here is a little pissed off, a little upset, but we're where we're at and there's still some games left."

A team has not come back from down 0-2 and won a best-of-five series since the Yankees in the 2017 ALDS when they lost their first two games at the Cleveland Guardians but won the next three to reach the ALCS.

"Definitely going to be a challenge," said designated hitter Ben Rice, whose two solo home runs Monday were New York's only source of offense. "Going down 2-0 doesn't feel good. It's on us to find our way out of it."

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — There might not be a more confident pitcher than Cam Schlittler, who does not doubt himself and did not doubt himself before Game 2. 

Sure, he knew that he was about to face a lineup that excels at placing bat on ball. But he also knew he was tied for the third-most strikeouts in the majors this season. 

“I feel like if I need to get one,” he said Saturday, “I’m going to be able to do that.” 

Schlittler’s prediction was off the mark because Tampa Bay’s bats were constantly on the mark. 

The Yankees ace of aces was not to blame for Monday’s 5-2 loss to the Rays in the division series at Tropicana Field, but he also was not able to play hero as he had in Game 1 of the wild-card series against the Red Sox. 

“All I can do is assess my outing and realize that it needs to be better than that,” said Schlittler, who blamed himself after a night he needed the help of his defense, which let him down repeatedly. 

After dominating Boston through 6 ¹/₃ scoreless, 10-strikeout innings, Schlittler only punched out two Rays while allowing four runs (two earned) on six hits and a walk in 4 ¹/₃ innings. 

It started immediately, with the aggressive Rays swinging early in counts and making consistent, often loud contact in the first inning. Errors by Ryan McMahon (on a chopper) and Jazz Chisholm Jr. (an ill-advised throw to first after recording an out at second) scored one run, but Schlittler did well to limit the damage. 

The game changed, though, in a four-run fifth inning during which the flame-throwing righty needed to throw pitches by Rays bats and could not. 

A single by Jonathan Aranda (played conservatively by Spencer Jones, who might have had a chance at a diving catch) and a double from Junior Caminero put runners on second and third without an out in a game that was then tied 1-1. 

Schlittler needed one of those strikeouts. Unlike the Rays, he whiffed. 

Liam Hicks managed to make contact — the softest imaginable, a tapper that traveled 5 feet in the air — but the slow roller to Chisholm was good enough to score the go-ahead run. 

Next it was Chandler Simpson who fell behind 1-2 but kept fighting, eventually grazing a 3-2 sinker for a swinging bunt that went 4 feet in the air toward George Lombard Jr. The rookie shortstop had a play at the plate and knew it, his eyes toward Austin Wells instead of the ball as he booted it on a backhand attempt to let in another run. 

“That’s what they do,” Schlittler said of the Rays. “I let up runs like that in April against them — just choppers in the infield — but that’s what they do. They put pressure on you, and they find a way to get those runs across.” 

Schlittler said he “just didn’t have my stuff today,” his velocity up a tick from the regular season but down from his Red Sox start. 

More notably, he did not have any help. Appropriately enough, Brent Headrick entered in the fifth and allowed two inherited runners to score.

Both the Milwaukee Brewers and San Diego Padres continue to troll one another.

While the Brewers were practicing on the field at Petco Park on Monday, the stadium had the cool, calm sound of elevator music blasting from the speakers.

Back Milwaukee, when the Padres were taking batting practice on Saturday, American Family Field was blasting “monotonous” music off the speakers.

San Diego did their best to attempt to drown out the music, as they had a Bluetooth speaker playing music next to their batting cage.

But for the Padres, the attempt to drown out the sound didn’t work as they found themselves down 2-0 in the NLDS.

In both games, the Padres lost in heartbreaking fashion.

On Saturday, San Diego blew a 2-2 lead in the seventh inning from a solo Wilson Contreras home run.

In the ninth inning of that game, Ty France thought he had a go-ahead two-run homer, until the ball bounced off the roof of the stadium and landed in Dustin Harris’ glove.

On Sunday, superstar closing pitcher Mason Miller took the mound with a 3-2 lead in the eighth, in an attempt to make a two-inning save.

Miller would give up two walks in the ninth, and then gave up a go-ahead two-run single to Jackson Chourio, resulting in the Padres falling 4-3.

After the game was over, speculation arose that Miller was tipping his pitches. On Monday, his manager, Craig Stammen, denied any possibility of his closer being predictable.

Game 3 of the NLDS is set to begin at 6:30 p.m. PT when Nick Pivetta faces off against Dustin May.

I went to game two of the ALDS today by myself.

I am a Guardians Season Ticket Holder, but in my 10-12 games a year, I always take 1-2 of our kids (ages 7, 6, almost 4, and 2). So, today was different. I got a scorecard because keeping score controls my emotions and competitive anxiety. I sat down and started talking to the older gentleman on my left who tolerated my various insights into the game very kindly.

On my right, I allowed a White Sox fan to sit in my assigned seat so he could sit next to his friends. White Sox fan person (a “boss” of some sort) was not profane or abusive. But, he very clearly had only started paying attention the past two weeks, at most. Yet, there he was, standing and screaming in joy as the team I live and die with daily failed to secure a crucial victory. His joy did not appear to be any less than mine would have been despite my significantly superior emotional investment. So… why am I bothering?

At some level, it has to be that I get joy from this. Seeing Anthony Kay spike a throw and allow two runs was joyous. 11 strikeouts from Gavin Williams was a thrill of hope for a weary world to rejoice in. Jo Adell gave me an electric moment where I thought he had deposited one in the bleachers. I do truly revel in the feelings these events produce.

But, at another level, it’s a longing to be part of something bigger and to succeed. Is Cleveland going to be a good place for me and my family to live? That’s a group project. Are we going to survive the threats of A.I., climate change, resurgent fascism, persistent totalitarianism, biological warfare and the billionaire oligarchs that profit from it all as a society? That’s a group project. I’m rooting for us. Watching my baseball team win gives me just a little glimmer of hope that winning the actual important games is possible. It makes me a believe a collection of wildly diverse people with their own special talents and roles can do impossible things when the Guardians beat the Angels on a Wednesday night.

But, the Guardians did not win tonight. The baseball Sabrowski threw to a hitter with a 19 wRC+ vs LHP caught an inch too much of the plate and landed just 36 inches fair. The ball Kwan hit to left field was almost misplayed by Antonacci and landed just inches within his glove. The ball that seemingly hit Jose was just half an inch from being obviously a hit and resulting in two runs when Adell hit his smash… glorious victory just inches away… leaving me with crushing defeat.

When I got home, our three-year old, Zalee, asked me if the Guardians won. I said, “No, but Onion won the hot dog race!” And she squealed in delight. Her primary interest in the game is if Onion wins the hot dog race. When we go to games, she is as disappointed if Onion loses as I am if the Guardians Lose.

In the big scheme of things, is my joy really that much more significant than hers? Is my disappointment more crushing? If I had to guess, I’d assume the opposite is true. Seeing her felt-covered hero of condiment fame triumph is a more significant epochal milestone for her than a World Series title would be in my 43 years on this globe.

But, I suppose I will be successful in teaching her to love this wonderful, awful, joyous, soul-crushing sport like I do (if the aformentioned billionaires let us watch it again next season, of course). Someday, Zalee will cheer, cry, thrill, deflate, and scream like I do. And, the reason that’s ok is that it will be something that reminds her and me that we are in this thing together. That we don’t win without the other feeling joy and pride, and we don’t lose without the other feeling pain and humiliation. And, that’s life. And that’s humanity.

The Guardians didn’t win today. But, Onion did. She swung her purse at the last second and broke the finish line by inches before Ketchup. So, rejoice, Zalee. It’s a good night, after all.

I hate Tropicana Field. I know many of you do too. If you are not a Yankees fan and are doing what I am also guilty of doing—reading the reactions of salty fans after playoff losses—grab your popcorn. This is the good stuff you’re probably looking for.

It blows my mind that baseball games in 2026 are played at places like this. It honestly blows my mind even more that this place was destroyed by an act of God two years ago, was rebuilt despite plans to replace it in the near future, and is being used for big playoff games. The roof is baseball-colored; there is statistical proof that teams other than the Rays struggle defensively here due to a lack of experience; the turf leads to weird hops that cause more errors to be committed against the Rays than any other team in baseball. It’s the strangest home-field advantage in baseball, and one that the Rays ran roughshod over to take advantage of a Yankees team that was just not focused from the jump tonight—and one that, to be clear, absolutely deserved this atrocious loss, even if it was played in the baseball version of Elysian Fields.

Alright, enough of my anger-filled soapbox. The Yankees set the tone for this one with three brutal first-inning errors, played shoddy defense the rest of the night, and just got Rays’d. Any opportunity they had to use their speed or slap hitting, they used it. The Yankees were not prepared. Aside from two home runs from Ben Rice and an oh-so-close deep flyout from Cody Bellinger with the bases juiced, the offense was dead again in a 5-2 loss that puts the season on the brink.

When you get no-hit for nearly eight innings the game before, you desperately want to get the monkey off your back early the next night. The quality of contact was good in that first inning against Freddy Peralta, with a Ben Rice warning-track flyout and a scorched lineout from Cody Bellinger, but the Yankees went quietly in the first before the utter chaos of the bottom half.

On just Cam Schlittler’s second pitch of the game, Yandy Diaz hit a soft Trop chopper to Ryan McMahon, which he promptly booted after misreading the hop. Jonathan Aranda then lined a single up the middle for the one real hit in the inning. Needing a double play, Schlittler got Junior Caminero to spike a ball into the turf that was snared by George Lombard Jr. for a brilliant flip for a forceout. Unfortunately, Jazz Chisholm Jr. decided to throw the ball into the dugout with no chance to turn two, giving the Rays the early lead.

The defensive inning from hell continued when a three-pitch strikeout from Liam Hicks was overturned into a catcher’s interference. Awarding a batter a base for a check-swing catcher’s interference is dumb, and I will forever believe that. The speedy Chandler Simpson ripped a ball to second for what looked like a tailor-made double play, but an awful throw from Chisholm pulled Lombard off the bag. The rookie shortstop somehow managed to tap the bag after to avoid a fourth error in the inning, and Cam survived the inning from hell with only one run allowed.

We got more Trop shenanigans when Spencer Jones hit a ball a mile high off the C-ring in center field, which was caught by Victor Mesa Jr. Objectively, almost every other team drops that ball because of their lack of experience reading fly balls here, but the Rays caught it, naturally. Two more quick outs had Peralta rolling through two.

Jonny DeLuca golfed an 0-2 curveball in the dirt for a leadoff double in the second, but was stranded on a trio of groundouts surrounding a two-out walk. The bottom of the order went down quietly as well, giving Peralta a perfect game through three innings just one night after Rasmussen’s brilliance. At this point, I’m not sure the vibes could get much worse.

Schlittler continued to grind through the third, allowing singles to Caminero and Simpson, but got out of a jam after a 108.5 mph scorched grounder from DeLuca was fielded cleanly by Lombard to end the threat. Just one batter later, with the Yankees entering their 13th inning of the series with just one hit, Rice allowed everyone on the team and in the fanbase to breathe for a second, smashing a leadoff home run in the fourth to tie the game at one.

Bellinger followed with a single, but was stranded by the next three hitters. Schlittler responded to the desperate gasp for a shutdown inning, retiring the Rays in order with help from a surprisingly solid play by Trent Grisham in center field. Peralta seemed to be cruising again after retiring the first two in the fifth, but things got interesting after a bullet double by Austin Wells and a gritty walk by Ryan McMahon. The ever-aggressive Kevin Cash pulled him for Cam Booser, betting on his lefty specialist to neutralize the best hitters on the team.

He walked Rice on five pitches to bring up Bellinger with the bases loaded. This was the moment. This was where the Yankees could show who they were. For a brief second, it seemed like they would. The All-Star left fielder absolutely pummeled a bad 0-2 fastball to deep center field. 102.9 mph, 405 feet. In 12 ballparks, it’s a grand slam. In some others, it’s off the wall. Unfortunately, as has happened all too many times in the postseason in the Judge era, the big hit fell just a few inches short, landing harmlessly in the glove of DeLuca.

It’s the type of gut punch that takes the air out of a fan, and maybe it took the air out of the team. It’s not how baseball works, but maybe it is. Schlittler allowed a bullet single (that Jones maybe should’ve caught?) and a bullet double from Caminero to set up second and third with nobody out. Usually, a team’s cleanup and five-hole hitters wouldn’t be conducive to 55 and 65 mph choppers that bounce two feet in front of home plate in RBI opportunities, but these are the Rays. Both runs scored on back-to-back Baltimore chops that the Yankees had no chance of getting an out at the plate on, even if Lombard had defended the latter cleanly. That gave the Rays a 3-1 lead.

The frustration didn’t end there. After Brent Headrick entered and struck out Mesa, we got another Trop chop grounder to Lombard. Due to the bounce the ball took and the speed of DeLuca, he had to rush the throw, which forced a long stretch from Luis García Jr. If the play was made cleanly, DeLuca would’ve been out by an eyelash, which tells you how perfect they had to be, but García couldn’t squeeze the throw, and everyone was safe. Another error. One batter later, Richie Palacios hit a two-run single to effectively ice this one, making it 5-1 Rays.

We then hit a weird point in the game. Ian Seymour came in for the Rays as a lefty bulk reliever, but Aaron Boone elected to keep his righties in the dugout. As a fan who was resigned to the outcome after the Palacios single, it seems like nothing, but damn, that’s pretty rough of your manager to be so apathetic in this spot. The lineup had no pulse against him in some rough matchups.

Playing out the string, John Schreiber tossed a scoreless sixth, Ryan Weathers and Paul Blackburn combined for the seventh, and Blackburn and David Bednar combined for the ninth. For the offense, all they had left was another home run for Rice, who continues to have a postseason to remember while his teammates give him no help, like 2018 LeBron.

Bryan Baker got the save in the ninth, 1-2-3, to solidify Game 2 for the Rays. If the Yankees want to win this series and get to the ALCS, they must win three straight against a team they’ve struggled against all year and win a game at Tropicana Field on Saturday after going 2-7 there to start this season, Bleak, I know.

There will be baseball played on Wednesday. After that, it’s up to the Yankees to decide. Game 3 will be at Yankee Stadium at 8 pm EDT. It’s Max Fried (pending the birth of his child) against a pitcher to be determined, but it will likely be Nick Martinez.

Box Score

Heroes, zeros and the inside pitch from the Yankees’ 5-2 loss to the Rays in Game 2 of the ALDS in St. Petersburg, Fla:  

Hero

Old-school baseball. Baseball’s best team at putting the ball in play struck out just four times total in a game started by Cam Schlittler, putting constant pressure on a Yankees defense that wilted.

Zero

The entire Yankees defense. Misplays, four of which were scored as errors, from (in order) Ryan McMahon, Jazz Chisholm Jr., Austin Wells, Spencer Jones, George Lombard Jr., Lombard again and Luis García Jr. led to three unearned runs and one of the ugliest playoff performances you will see.

Unsung Hero

Brooklyn’s Richie Palacios knocked a two-run single in the fifth inning that created far too much distance for a Yankees lineup that has not solved Rays pitching (apart from Ben Rice).

Key Stat

4: Errors by the Yankees — and they probably should have been charged with five — which tied with the second most in franchise postseason history

Quote

“It’s going to be a rough ride back, but you’ve got to find out what you’re made of. It’s gut-check time.”

—Aaron Boone