Trailing the Toronto Blue Jays by just two games in the AL East and holding a slim one-game lead over the Boston Red Sox for the top American League Wild Card position, every game is crucial.
The Yankees seemed to start strong, taking an early 2-0 lead thanks to solo home runs from Aaron Judge in the first inning and Cody Bellinger in the fourth.
However, the Tigers responded quickly.
Centerfielder Parker Meadows crushed a two-run homer off Yankees starter Will Warren in the fifth inning, tying the game and setting the stage for a dramatic and disastrous seventh inning for the Yankees bullpen.
A historic inning to forget
Yankees manager Aaron Boone called the seventh inning “just a rough inning,” but it was much more than that – it was an unforgettable disaster that could rank among the worst in the franchise’s long history.
Will Warren, who had pitched effectively through six innings, allowing only two runs on two hits, was pulled from the game. The relief corps, however, were unable to contain the Tigers‘ offense.
Fernando Cruz started the seventh inning but struggled severely. He issued multiple walks, hit a batter, and threw a wild pitch, opening the gates for a major scoring outburst.
By the end of the inning, the Yankees bullpen had allowed nine runs to cross the plate without recording a single out. In a rare occurrence, every Tigers hitter in the lineup scored a run during the frame.
This inning didn’t just sting, it made history in several ways. Baseball statistician Katie Sharp revealed that since MLB began recording play-by-play data in 1912, no team had ever allowed at least one run in an inning as a result of a walk, a hit-by-pitch, a wild pitch, and a triple all in the same inning.
Furthermore, Cruz and Mark Leiter Jr., another reliever who pitched later in the inning, became only the fifth pair of pitchers since 1950 to each allow four or more earned runs in a single inning without recording an out.
This rare and unfortunate feat had only happened once in the past 75 years.
The last comparable bullpen collapse was by the 2003 Florida Marlins, who gave up 14 runs in the first inning of a game at Fenway Park against the Boston Red Sox.
Interestingly, the Marlins went on to win the World Series that year, defeating the Yankees in the process. So, while one terrible inning can be damaging, it is not always a sign of doom.
Nevertheless, this seventh inning meltdown highlighted an ongoing problem for the Yankees-their bullpen struggles. With a 4.40 ERA, their relief pitching ranks near the bottom of the league and has been a glaring weakness throughout the season.
The game ultimately ended in a humiliating 12-2 loss to Detroit, leaving the Yankees with plenty to ponder as they try to maintain their postseason hopes.
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