Ivan Nova has lost his magic touch, and the Yankees still are searching to find theirs.
After the young right-hander was knocked around for five runs in six innings, the Yankees’ ninth-inning rally fell a run short in a 6-5 loss to the Reds yesterday in The Bronx.
“We just didn’t get that last hit we needed,” manager Joe Girardi said. “It was good to be able to come back, but it’s frustrating to get so close.”
In years past, this was the kind of game the Yankees seemed destined to win. They came up with a pair of runs in the ninth, knocking Reds closer Sean Marshall out of the game after Jayson Nix’s RBI single brought them within a run with one out.
Christopher Pasatieri
SIN CINCY: Ivan Nova has nowhere to hide during a six-inning, five-run outing (with 12 strikeouts) in the Yankees’ 6-5 loss to the Reds yesterday at the Stadium.
Derek Jeter followed by grounding into a fielder’s choice to third, barely beating the relay from second to avoid the double play and extend the game. But Curtis Granderson mustered just a slow grounder to first, and the Yankees lost for the fourth time in their last five games.
The end wasn’t the only disappointment for the Yankees, who saw Nova finish with a career-high 12 strikeouts. That impressive number was overshadowed by his slider that Joey Votto hit out for a three-run shot in the fifth inning after the Yankees had tied the game at 2-2 in the fourth.
“I don’t care about the strikeouts,” Nova said. “I don’t like the way I’m pitching right now. I’m making a lot of mistakes.”
None was more damaging than the Votto homer, the sixth Nova has given up in his past four games.
“I’m just falling behind hitters, and then I’ve got to go to the middle [of the plate],” Nova said. “When you make a mistake, they hit it hard.”
Though Nova suffered a sprained right ankle in his last start in Baltimore, he said he was not bothered by the injury — and the dozen strikeouts back that up.
“It was really just the one home run to Votto that hurt us,” catcher Russell Martin said.
But that was the kind of fatal blow that either didn’t happen to Nova last season, when he finished 16-4, or if it did, it was something the Yankees would overcome.
Martin remains confident Nova still will get results.
“There’s not much difference between last year and this year,” Martin said of Nova (4-2). “Maybe his fastball is up a little bit more.”
Nova’s troubles are symbolic of what has been ailing the rest of the team this season.
Whether it was ugly starting pitching early in the season or the recent failure to hit with runners in scoring position, the Yankees have been missing something throughout the year. That has them just two games over .500 nearly a quarter through the season.
The ninth inning provided some glimmer the old explosive Bombers were returning.
With the Yankees down 6-3, Raul Ibanez started the inning with his second double of the game and scored on Nick Swisher’s single to center. After Martin struck out looking, Andruw Jones delivered a single that sent Swisher to third.
With regular first baseman Mark Teixeira was unavailable because of illness, Nix had to hit and delivered his third hit of the day, knocking in Swisher.
But that proved to be the final hit of the day. Jose Arredondo came on to retire Jeter and Granderson, who was ahead in the count 3-0 before grounding out.
“Maybe what we were able to do in the ninth will turn things around,” Girardi said.
It can’t come soon enough.
dan.martin@nypost.com
Ivan Nova, the Yankees, Russell Martin, Curtis Granderson ebook download, Joey Votto, Joe Girardi, Nick Swisher, Jayson Nix
No comments:
Post a Comment