If you were expecting fiery outbursts or dramatic declarations about the Yankees’ historic downturn — a slump that saw them scoreless in three consecutive games for the first time in nearly 10 years and currently facing a season-worst six-game losing streak — the team offered none of that.
Instead, from the front office to the manager’s office to the dugout, the message was pretty much the same — even if fans don’t want to hear it.
“You have to maintain consistency with routines,” said general manager Brian Cashman during a HOPE Week charity event on Wednesday. “Hopefully, this storm will pass sooner rather than later, but we can’t take anything for granted. It’s definitely a challenge. We aim to win every game, though it’s not feasible. Being in such a tough period isn’t ideal. It’s certainly not enjoyable. Recently, we’ve hit a difficult phase, but we’ll work our way through it.”
The lineup, which had been leading in numerous categories for much of the season, started to falter a week ago when the Yankees managed just one run but still won against the Royals.
That began a seven-game stretch heading in which the Yankees put up just seven runs, a lack of production not seen by the club since 1968.
They did snap their scoreless in a 3-2 loss to the Angels on Wednesday, mustering three hits, two of which were solo homers — which classifies as an offensive outburst in these times.
“I get it’s historic because we got shut out a few times,” Aaron Boone said before the latest defeat. “But it’s a few games out of 162. It’s a snapshot, especially with as good an offense as we are.
“It’s more when these things become weeks, when you struggle as an offense. Then you start to make adjustments with what’s going on with different individuals. That’s not the case here. This is a few days. Granted, we have not scored. We have to score.”
And play fundamentally sound, which has also been an issue of late.
“When you’re not scoring, those little things, you’ve got to be perfect with,” Boone said. “You’ve got to be able to advance the runner. … Guys are in a good spot [and] in the right frame of mind. We just have to keep things small. That’s been a hallmark of what we’ve done all year and an identity of who we are.”
Cody Bellinger, who homered Wednesday, said a stretch like this one is to be expected, even for the best of teams, though this one has garnered more attention because of the numbers.
“Every team I’ve been on, we’ve hit a part of the season when you wonder, ‘What’s going on here?’ ” said Bellinger, in his first season with the Yankees after a career spent with the Dodgers and Cubs. “There are always variables in baseball. But our goal is to win the division, get to the postseason and win the World Series. We play 162 for a reason and there are going to be stretches when you say, ‘What the heck is going on?’ We just have to trust our guys.”
Those guys are — for the most part — the same ones that led the majors in slugging percentage, homers and OPS through June 11.
Since then, the Yankees entered Wednesday with the worst offense in the game, though Boone noted that their metrics showed they have continued to hit the ball hard.
“We’re obviously in a tough spot right now, a tough patch,” Cashman said. “But these guys care and they’re grinding through it. We’ll fight our way through it. … No one’s gonna give us anything. We’ve got to take it.”
