Hey, at least they’re not the Red Sox.
The Yankees are still flirting with first place in the AL East despite struggles in the clutch, highlighted by a 2-for-16 performance with runners in scoring position in Wednesday’s loss to the Royals. That display, however, was one of the few the Yankees weren’t able to overcome. Their rival and weekend opponent, Boston, has not been so lucky.
The Sox are still hovering below .500 and enter the weekend set ranked 25th with a .225 average with runners in scoring position.
“Guys are going to figure it out, I know that,” Boston’s Dustin Pedroia told reporters following Wednesday’s loss to Toronto. “I ain’t going to hit .2-f—ing-40. [Kevin Youkilis is] not going to hit .240. [Carl Crawford is] not going to hit .210.”
The Yankees probably aren’t going to keep hitting .178, but that’s the average they held since April 23 entering Thursday’s late game with Kansas City. The lineup has masked that poor production, though, with 77 walks and 20 home runs.
“Our guys have been patient and always looked for their pitch to hit,” manager Joe Girardi said. “I definitely don’t want guys looking for the first pitch they see because that’s not the type of club we are. And that’s one of the reasons we’re having opportunities to score runs because we’re taking those walks. It’s just we’ve struggled lately with runners in scoring position.”
