The New York Yankees and Seattle Mariners are frustrating their fans with some tepid performances at the plate.
While the Yankees are in control of the American League’s first wild-card spot, the visiting Mariners are under .500 and 3 1/2 games out of a playoff position heading into the opener of a three-game series between the teams Tuesday night.
New York has played its past 14 games without Cody Bellinger (hamstring) and is 30-29 since losing Aaron Judge to a fractured rib. Giancarlo Stanton (calf) has been out since late April. While the Yankees expect all three to return before the end of the regular season, they head into the upcoming series with a .230 team batting average — third-worst in the major leagues — and are hitting .217 since Judge last played on May 31.
Despite the struggles at the plate, the Yankees are 16-10 since just before the All-Star break after taking two of three from the visiting Atlanta Braves over the weekend. New York earned a pair of one-run victories before Trent Grisham’s home run accounted for their lone run in Sunday’s 2-1, 10-inning loss.
“We’ve got to do more and put some runs on,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “But unlike some of the other games where we’ve been shut down, I do feel like we were getting some good swings off them. We had better at-bats as a club, but we’ve still got to find a way to push (runs) across.”
The Yankees’ offense has yet to get a boost from trade acquisitions Luis Garcia Jr. and Heliot Ramos, who are a combined 6-for-36 since arriving in separate deals last week.
Ben Rice had the tying hit in the ninth inning Friday and hit a home run Saturday but is 6-for-46 in his past 13 games. Jazz Chisholm Jr. is 6-for-38 in his last 11 games, while Grisham is 9-for-46 in his last 13 contests.
Seattle is the only AL team with a worse batting average (.229) than the Yankees and is a season-worst seven games under .500. The Mariners were outscored 20-4 in the final four games of a nine-game homestand and are 5-13 since an 8-0 win over Cincinnati on July 20 when they led the AL West by a half game.
The Mariners went 1-for-15 with runners in scoring position over the weekend when they were swept by the Tampa Bay Rays and have been held to three runs or fewer in 12 of their last 18 games.
“It’s not for lack of work,” Seattle manager Dan Wilson said. “These guys are putting in the work. They’re putting in the time that’s necessary, and they’re coming out prepared. We’re just not seeing it on the field.”
New York’s 3.30 ERA from the pitching staff is the best in baseball, and its starters own a 3.42 ERA. Left-hander Ryan Weathers (5-7, 3.79 ERA) will look to carry that momentum as he opens the series on the mound.
Weathers is 2-0 with a 0.48 ERA in his past three starts and is coming off consecutive scoreless outings. Last Tuesday, he allowed four hits over six innings during a 2-0 win against the St. Louis Cardinals.
Weathers has a 2.16 ERA in two career starts against the Mariners. He made his season debut in Seattle on March 30 and allowed one run on four hits in 4 1/3 innings of a no-decision, striking out seven.
Right-hander Bryan Woo (8-8, 4.31) is starting for Seattle and will attempt to win consecutive starts for the first time since winning three straight from May 6-18. Woo halted a four-game winless skid when he allowed three hits in seven scoreless innings during Wednesday’s 4-2 win over the Detroit Tigers.
Woo is 2-1 with a 2.73 ERA in five career starts against the Yankees.
–Field Level Media
