"Yankees' 12th-Inning Meltdown: Missed Chances and Bullpen Woes in Marathon Loss to Guardians"

For 11 innings, Tuesday night in The Bronx had all the intensity of a playoff showdown between the American League’s top two teams. But in the 12th inning, the Yankees’ bullpen, which had been flawless for eight innings, finally crumbled, allowing Cleveland to score six runs and secure a 9-5 victory.
Despite the late collapse, the Yankees will likely rue their missed opportunities, including costly baserunning and fielding errors, and a lack of timely hitting, which contributed to their third straight loss in the 4-hour, 5-minute marathon. “They made a couple more plays,” manager Aaron Boone said, reflecting on the Guardians’ win that put them back atop the AL standings.
The Yankees’ struggles in extra innings began when Tim Mayza allowed a go-ahead pinch-hit RBI double to Lane Thomas, setting the stage for Cleveland’s big inning. Jose Ramirez added a run-scoring single off Michael Tonkin as the Guardians piled on, leaving the Yankees with little chance to recover.
Offensively, the Yankees went 0-for-13 with runners in scoring position until Aaron Judge’s two-run double in the 12th finally broke the drought. “It’s been a few games we’ve struggled a little offensively,” Boone said. “We’ve got to cash in on opportunities right now.”
One of those missed opportunities came in the eighth inning when Trent Grisham, pinch-running for Giancarlo Stanton, was thrown out at home on Austin Wells’ pinch-hit double. Grisham hesitated at third base, unsure if coach Luis Rojas was sending him, which led to a missed chance to take the lead.
The Yankees’ bullpen had been stellar throughout most of the game, especially after Luis Gil was forced to exit in the fourth inning due to lower-back tightness. Gil struggled with control, issuing six walks and allowing three runs in three-plus innings before being pulled after giving up a homer to Brayan Rocchio and walking Steven Kwan.
Tim Hill came in and stopped the bleeding, retiring three batters in a row to keep the Yankees within one run. Eight Yankee relievers were used in total, with each one holding Cleveland at bay until the fateful 12th inning.
The Yankees got off to a promising start, with Juan Soto and Aaron Judge each hitting solo home runs in the first inning to give them a 2-0 lead. It was the fifth time this season the duo had gone back-to-back.
However, Cleveland responded quickly, tying the game by the third inning and taking the lead in the fourth on Rocchio’s home run. The Yankees tied it again in the bottom of the fourth on an Anthony Volpe RBI double that scored Jose Trevino, but they couldn’t capitalize further as the game slipped away.
Oswaldo Cabrera nearly sparked a late rally in the seventh, but his pinch-hit attempt was thwarted by a diving catch from Daniel Schneemann, robbing the Yankees of a potential extra-base hit and ultimately sealing their fate.
This was a very tough loss for the Yankees, miscommunication between Luis Rojas and Trent Grisham, offense can’t score when needed, and bullpen giving up 6 runs in the 12th inning. The Yankees can still recover from this loss even though the salt in the wound of last night’s loss was Luis Gil exiting the game early with lower back tightness, but they can still win the series within the next two games here in the Bronx against Cleveland.