Yankees’ clubhouse heat

The Yankees left Tampa on Sunday with a five-game losing streak, and Jazz Chisholm Jr.’s extra-innings mistake had become the center of it. (mlb.com) (si.com) The flashpoint came in Saturday’s 5-4 loss, when Tampa Bay scored twice in the 10th inning and walked off New York on infield contact after Chisholm could not complete the play. Chisholm told reporters afterward he was unsure whether touching first base before throwing back across the diamond would still have produced a double play. (espn.com) (heavy.com) Aaron Boone moved quickly on Sunday to defend him. Boone said Chisholm was “not confused,” called the hop a tough one, and said the infielder needed to answer those questions “in a better way.” (heavy.com) The loss Saturday was New York’s fourth straight. The loss Sunday, another 5-4 defeat in St. Petersburg, finished a three-game sweep by Tampa Bay and pushed the Yankees to 8-7. (espn.com 1) (espn.com 2) (mlb.com) The bigger problem is not one play. Aaron Judge said after Sunday’s game that the offense needs to “simplify some things at the plate” after a five-game stretch in which New York scored 13 runs. (si.com) Sports Illustrated’s breakdown of that skid showed five Yankees regulars batting below.200, a.203 team average with runners in scoring position, and only three home runs over those five games. (si.com) The standings still say the slump is early-season damage, not a collapse. As of Sunday night, the Yankees, Rays and Orioles were all 8-7 and tied atop the American League East. (mlb.com) That is why Boone’s public defense mattered. He was trying to keep one late-game mistake from becoming a referendum on a player already off to a slow start while the whole lineup searches for runs. (heavy.com) (si.com) New York’s next chance to cool the noise came Monday, April 13, at home against the Los Angeles Angels. After five straight losses and a sweep in Tampa Bay, the Yankees did not have much room left for another messy finish. (mlb.com)