ATLANTA – Adding another grim measure to the rinse-repeat cycle of New York Yankees losses, Tuesday night’s quiet defeat at Truist Park had sunk them to the .500 level.
After 120 games.
"We’re not showing up, that’s what it comes down to," said captain Aaron Judge, following a 5-0 loss to the Braves in which the Yankees collected just one base hit.
"We’re not showing up when we need to, especially down the stretch right now," Judge said of a club that has lost six of eight games on a road trip that concludes Wednesday. "We’re not capitalizing when we need to."
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Tuesday's humbling loss featured another recurring first inning nightmare for Luis Severino, who put the Yanks in a 3-0 deficit against the unyielding Braves (77-42), the NL's best.
Of course, one run was too many.
With a string of lackluster at-bats, the Yankees were one-hit by second-year starter Bryce Elder over seven innings, and they grounded into four double plays.
"It just flat wasn't good enough," said manager Aaron Boone.
Both Boone and Judge (who walked twice) can’t knock the club’s preparation, but "it’s just the execution right now" that has the captain rankled.
"No one’s happy about it," said Judge, though "you can’t sit here and dwell on this, that isn’t helping anybody.
"I’ve got a job to do … I’ve got to show up and try to lead these guys,’’ Judge said, adding that “we’ve always got a chance" based on the calendar.
And yet, "we’re running out of time, I’ve got to be out there," Judge said of playing daily, often in right field, on his still-healing right big toe.
"There’s no time to waste. We’ve got to try to put the best lineup out there every single day. If that’s me playing outfield, we’ve got to do it."
Boone’s latest optimistic reminder – there’s a quarter of a season left – was punctuated by the recognition of a harsh reality.
"We’re just not playing well enough. It starts with me and on down. We’ve got to be better," said Boone. "It’s a broken record, right?"
Residing at the bottom of the AL East standings, 6.5 games out of a wild card spot with 42 games left, Boone and the Yankees (60-60) are trying desperately to take the minimalist view.
"Forget October. Forget September. That’s not the focus, and it never is, frankly, even when you’re in the driver’s seat," Boone said. "We’re scuffling our (butts) off and we need to do better. Take some personal pride.
"And it’s not fun, getting knocked down and beat up, especially when you wear this uniform."
