Yankees limp quietly out of playoffs with wild-card loss
The New York Yankees just ran out of gas.
Long heralded as the Bronx Bombers, the Yankees went out with a whimper inside the second incarnation of the House that Ruth built, losing 3-0 to a young Houston Astros team that beat them at their own home-run hitting game.
While the Yankees' three-hit, zero-run performance was as much a symptom of Dallas Keuchel's dominance, the writing on the wall for a tired ballclub was long coming.
"It's really disappointing. It's hard." manager Joe Girardi said. "This is a club that fought all year long, and there's a lot of character in that room, and this hurts. And we just didn't get it done."
Saddled with a season-high seven-game cushion atop the AL East on July 28, the Yankees stumbled to a 29-31 record over the final two months of the season. The alarm bells were loudly ringing through the five boroughs as the Yankees limped into the wild-card game losers of six of their final seven games.
Things continued to go south with the loss of Mark Teixeira in late August. The first baseman suffered a fractured bone in his leg and the swelling seemed to engulf the entire Yankee offense.
Alex Rodriguez slashed .224/.325/.480 with 34 strikeouts in his final 31 games, and pushed his postseason hitless streak with runners in scoring position to 19 at-bats following Tuesday's 0-for-4 performance.
The second-highest scoring offense in baseball finished its most meaningful month of the season with the fourth-worst OPS in the majors.
SEPT/OCT PRODUCTION
| Player | PA | HR | AVG/OBP/SLG | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jacoby Ellsbury | 123 | 0 | .202/.254/.246 | 24 |
| Brett Gardner | 119 | 4 | .198/.271/.321 | 25 |
| Carlos Beltran | 128 | 6 | .256/.313/.436 | 15 |
| Alex Rodriguez | 114 | 7 | .224/.325/.480 | 34 |
| Brian McCann | 103 | 3 | .174/.301/.279 | 18 |
| Chase Headley | 123 | 1 | .179/.252/.223 | 35 |
| Greg Bird | 114 | 9 | .267/.351/.604 | 36 |
| Rob Refsnyder | 34 | 1 | .355/.412/.548 | 5 |
| Didi Gregorius | 105 | 2 | .248/.319/390 | 18 |
Jacoby Ellsbury and his $22-million a year contract were relegated to the bench. Stephen Drew and Brendan Ryan joined Teixeira by closing out the year injured. CC Sabathia checked into an alcohol rehab center on Tuesday.
"Physically it's not a very healthy group in there right now at the end of the season," Girardi said of his clubhouse. "Guys are beat up."
Trailing by three in the ninth inning Tuesday, the Yankees went out with hardly a peep, as Astros closer Luke Gregerson retired the side on just eight pitches.
"We just ran out of time," Brett Gardner said. "It's definitely a tough pill to swallow, to see another team celebrating on your field."