The New York Yankees faced off against the Minnesota Twins on Thursday evening in the first game of a three-game series. Coming off their fourth consecutive series win, the Yankees were looking to continue their success, but we’re completely outmatched against a dominant Minnesota offense.
The Twins scored nine runs in the first inning, eventually emerging victorious 11–2, putting the Yankees well beyond reach and forcing them to utilize their bullpen for the majority of the contest.
Bad news and worse news for the Yankees:
Yankees rookie pitcher Jhony Brito entered the game with a 0.90 ERA and left it with a 6.75 ERA, giving up seven earned runs across six hits and a walk. He tosses 34 pitches, giving up two homers and multiple extra-base hits before being pulled.
It was only a matter of time before Brito came crashing back down to earth and experienced a difficult outing. It’ll be a good chance for him to show resiliency and bounce back after a tough performance, but the Yankees will have to move on and live to see another day.
The bullpen struggled as well, aside from Ian Hamilton and Jimmy Cordero, who put together 4.0 innings of quality stuff. Colton Brewer, who was solid before Thursday’s loss, gave up four earned runs and three homers across 3.1 innings, tossing 52 pitches.
Offensively, the Yankees were nearly blanked, with the only player to get on base being Anthony Rizzo. He posted an infield single and two home runs, one of which was a 421-foot bomb to centerfield. Rizzo is now hitting .326 on the season with a .423 OBP and .581 slugging percentage. Rizzo has quietly been one of the team’s best offensive weapons to start the year, but the rest of the team contributed 12 strikeouts on the evening. Aaron Judge snapped a 45-game streak of getting on base after being pulled late in the game for rest-related purposes.
The Yankees will have to pick themselves up and compete tomorrow evening with Nestor Cortés on the mound, who offers a more experienced starter that should present a higher probability of success.