What once was a double-digit lead in the American League East for the New York Yankees is down to five games.
Following a five-game winning streak at the end of August, the Yankees have now lost five of their last six games after a 9-0 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays Friday night.
New York managed just five hits, never getting a runner past second base Friday night as the pressure on manager Aaron Boone continues to mount.
"That’s an embarrassing loss," Boone said after the game, according to the New York Post. "Hopefully, it’s one of those rock-bottom things where you should be pissed off [and] embarrassed."
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The Yankees got a quality start from pitcher Domingo German – 6.2 innings, two earned runs – but New York was never able to get anything going offensively, and the bullpen allowed six runs in the eighth inning to put the game away for Tampa Bay.
"I don't pay attention to it. That's the worst thing you can do in anything is press or feel pressure," Yankees slugger Aaron Judge said when asked about New York’s lead in the AL East. "We're playing a kid's game. This is a game we love, and we've got to go out there with enthusiasm every single night and not really worry about the standings.
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"Because if we show up and do what we do — have good at-bats, command the stuff we need to on the mound — we're going to look up at the end of the year and be where we want to be in the standings. We can't sit here and try to press. I don't think anybody in this room is trying to press or look at that kind of stuff. We've got plenty on our plate."
The Yankees are now 15-25 since the All-Star break and have been shut out six times in the second half of the season.
"It's just embarrassing when you get beat like that, and you're going through the struggles you are," Boone added, according to ESPN. "I'm in charge of this team. What we're going through right now, I know better than anyone, there's going to be hard moments and hard times. I do think the effort's there, I think the care is there. But we've set a much better standard in that room that we've got to start living up to."
The Rays and the Yankees play the second game of a three-game series Saturday at 6:10 p.m. ET.
