OAKLAND, Calif. — For 13 straight games, the Yankees made nearly every play, came through with every big hit … and won every game.
That changed Saturday in a 3-2 loss to the Athletics that still contained some drama, with Aaron Judge blasting a two-run homer off Sergio Romo with one out in the top of the ninth to pull the Yankees to within a run.
But Giancarlo Stanton popped out and Joey Gallo grounded out to snap the Yankees’ longest winning streak in sixty years.
“Just one of those days,’’ said Anthony Rizzo, who blooped a single to left before Judge went deep in the ninth.
The Yankees generated nothing against Oakland right-hander Frankie Montas for seven innings and were blanked by Andrew Chafin in the eighth.
The Yankees’ defense wasn’t good and Nestor Cortes wasn’t as sharp as he had been in recent starts, but the main culprit Saturday was a lineup that had been clicking as well as it has all year.
Montas faced just two batters over the minimum, allowing just a pair of hits to Judge and a walk to LeMahieu.
The Yankees went into the game having homered 10 times in their previous three games, a season-high for a three-game stretch, and having scored at least five runs in their previous eight games, also a season-best.
But after Judge’s two-out double in the top of the first, the Yankees didn’t get another runner in scoring position against Montas, who entered the game with a 2.54 ERA over his previous 10 starts.
And they fell behind 2-0 in the bottom of the second.
Cortes retired the first two batters in the inning before Chad Pinder doubled to center, just beating the throw from Judge to second base.
Sean Murphy walked on four pitches and Tony Kemp followed with a single up the middle to score Pinder and send Murphy to third.
With runners on the corners, Cortes attempted to pick off Kemp at first, but he was called for a balk by third-base umpire Will Little, allowing Murphy to score and make it 2-0.
Cortes and Rizzo argued the call, to no avail, before Cortes escaped the inning.
Little also missed a call at third the following inning, when Starling Marte stole third, but was tagged out by Odor in time. Because the Yankees had already lost their challenge, the call stood.
Yan Gomes followed with a liner that was caught by LeMahieu to the left of second base. LeMahieu threw to third to double up Marte, but Odor’s foot was off the bag. Little called him out, anyway, and Oakland stunningly lost the challenge, leading to manager Bob Melvin’s ejection.
The A’s added another run in the fourth, when Matt Chapman led off with a homer to left-center for a 3-0 lead.
That was all Cortes allowed in 5 ¹/₃ innings. It was just the second time this year he has given up more than two earned runs in a start.
Albert Abreu and Lucas Luetge pitched well in relief to give the Yankees’ offense time to generate a comeback, but it didn’t happen.
Judge opened the top of the seventh with a single for the Yankees’ second hit of the afternoon, but Stanton whiffed and Gallo hit into a double play.
“It felt like we hit the ball hard all game,’’ Cortes said of the offense. “We just couldn’t seal the deal.”
Judge, still as hot as any player in the majors, gave the Yankees a chance at the end and said the since-ended streak “shows what we’re capable of.”
“It’s something I preached about this team,’’ Judge said. “A lot of people didn’t believe it. We can win games a lot of ways.”
Just not this game.