The mood in the clubhouse shifted as much as the sky, as the frustration of a matinee was overshadowed by the celebration of a nightcap.
But there wasn’t much difference between the Yankees’ 2-0 series-clinching win over the Pirates and the 5-3 extra-inning loss that ended hours earlier, as their struggling offense was held without a run in 16 of 18 innings.
The Yankees have been held to fewer than six runs in 28 of their past 30 games and have scored a total of 18 runs in the six games since the All-Star break, including eight in Monday’s win over Pittsburgh.
“We gotta improve there,” manager Aaron Boone said. “I feel like I’ve said that a lot here over the last month. We know we gotta produce better offensively, and consistently, night in and night out. We’re working to get that done. For us to reach our peak we gotta get some guys going and be more consistent.”
It will have to come from a lineup that has offered few reasons to believe — which has ranked 28th in runs, 30th in batting average (.206), 30th in on-base percentage (.262), 26th in slugging percentage (.366) and second in strikeouts in the past month.
It will have to come without Giancarlo Stanton, who is “much closer” to returning, according to Boone, but not close enough to offer a timeline.
And it will have to come without Aaron Judge, who has been out since May 31, when the Yankees were 13 games over .500.
Now, they are 12 games over .500.
“It’s Aaron Judge, it’s a massive presence,” Boone said of the impact of the captain’s absence. “But again, he’s not there right now. Look at these names, we have a lot of good names here, capable, and we gotta step it up a little better.”
Those names combined for 12 strikeouts and six hits (four singles) in the first game of the doubleheader, while batting 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position. All three runs in Game 1 came on Ben Rice’s 30th home run of the season in the seventh inning.
Game 2 offered even less optimism, as the Yankees recorded just two hits through the first six innings. Then, a pair of once-hyped prospects briefly inspired hope again.
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After Cody Bellinger worked a one-out walk in the bottom of the seventh, Jasson Domínguez brought the first run home with a two-out double to left. On the next pitch, Anthony Volpe ripped a hit to left — following a pair of defensive misplays — to record his second RBI since June 20.
The struggling youngsters saved the day.
But who will save the season?
“We need everyone to step up,” Boone said.
