The Yankees dropped their second straight game, as they were defeated by the Minnesota Twins 6-1 on Monday night at Target Field.
Here are some takeaways…
– For the second time in about two weeks, Johnny Brito gave the Yankees another short outing against the Twins. He did get off to a better start this time around, retiring six of the first seven batters he faced over two scoreless innings.
However, Brito didn’t fare much better in the third, as Minnesota scratched across three runs. With the bases loaded and one out, Jorge Polanco lined a two-run single to right to give the Twins the lead.
After an RBI groundout made it 3-0, Brito issued a two out walk to end his night. Greg Weissert entered in relief and got a fly out to end the inning.
Brito finished with a final line of three runs on three hits and three walks in just 2.2 innings of work. He now has a 6.11 ERA through five big league starts.
Joey Gallo took Weissert deep to right center for his sixth homer of the season leading off the bottom of the fourth. The right-hander allowed just that run across two innings.
– The only thing colder than the temperature in Minnesota tonight was the Yankees offense. New York was only able to muster three hits against old friend Sonny Gray across seven shutout innings.
– Their first chance came on an Aaron Judge opposite field double in the fourth, but a ground out and strikeout quickly ended the threat. After struggling during the homestand, Judge reached base twice on the night.
– They had another huge opportunity against the Twins bullpen in the eighth as two hits and an error loaded the bases, however, Anthony Rizzo struck out on three pitches to end the inning.
– The Yankees loaded the bases again in the top of the ninth, but they were only able to scratch across one run on a fielders choice. Aaron Hicks struck out on three pitches with two on to end the game.
New York had just six hits and finished the night 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position. They’ve scored three runs or fewer in nine of their last 11 games.
What’s next
The Yankees will look to bounce back when they face-off with the Twins in the second game of this series on Tuesday night at 7:40 pm
Nestor Cortes (3-0, 3.09 ERA) will take the mound looking for his fourth win of the season against Twins right-hander Joe Ryan (4-0, 3.24 ERA).