RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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See the full story · 1 sourcesPaul Blackburn has been a revelation for the Yankees, but the breakout reliever was off his game in Wednesday’s 6-5, 12-inning loss to the White Sox.
The right-hander, who had the second-best ERA (0.92) of any pitcher with at least 30 innings since May 16, gave up a two-run homer to Sam Antonacci and a solo shot to Munetaka Murakami in the eighth inning. That erased what had been a 4-0 lead for the Yankees, and set them up for an ugly defeat.
While they retook the lead on an Anthony Volpe sac fly in the top of the 11th, catcher Ali Sánchez let the White Sox tie things up again in the bottom of the inning when he made an errant pickoff throw to third. Sánchez had no reason to make the throw with the Yankees an out away from ending the game and Ryan McMahon playing off the bag, but he fired wildly nonetheless.
Sánchez also grounded out with the bases loaded and two out in the 12th before Ryan Yarbrough, essentially the last pitcher in the Yankees’ taxed bullpen, allowed a walk-off single to Edgar Quero.
The Yankees, ahead early thanks to a four-run first, blanked the White Sox for the first six innings. But trouble found Cam Schlittler in the seventh when Murakami began the inning with a seven-pitch walk. Schlittler then hit Miguel Vargas with a first-pitch sinker before former Yankee Andrew Benintendi hit a one-out double past a diving Paul Goldschmidt and down the right-field line.
Fortunately for the Yankees, only Murakami scored on the knock, as Vargas was held at third. Fernando Cruz then ended the threat by inducing a popup and a strikeout with two men in scoring position.
Schlittler totaled 6 1/3 innings, two hits, one walk, one earned run and eight strikeouts over 93 pitches. The right-hander, using his curveball more and more alongside his three fastballs lately, also recorded 18 whiffs as he lowered his American League-leading ERA to 2.04.
Goldschmidt put the Yankees on the board with an RBI single in the first, while Spencer Jones, recalled after Cody Bellinger went on the injured list over the weekend, crushed a three-run homer in the opening inning.
Jones’ dinger was the third of his young major league career. Two of those homers have now come off Davis Martin, but the White Sox ace managed to complete six innings with the Yankees’ offense going silent until the game moved into extras.
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