New York Yankees relief pitcher Luke Weaver expressed frustration with his game after yet another abysmal outing in game one of the ALDS. Weaver entered Saturday’s game against Toronto in the seventh inning with his team trailing 2-1.
He allowed a walk, then a single, and then another single to drive in a run without picking up an out, allowing the Blue Jays to take a 3-1 lead that was then extended to 6-1 after Weaver was quickly pulled.
Though he had a solid season overall, his final month of the regular season and his first two playoff outings have been detrimental to the Yankees. A frustrated Weaver talked about his struggles after the game.
âThe results havenât been good. Thereâs been a lot of internal factors,â Weaver said. âI donât want to get too crazy into it, but thereâs been adjustments Iâve had to make based off of things that people are seeing, and it just hasnât really lined up. Itâs been pretty late in the adjustment period, and itâs just not lining up out there.”
âI donât feel like my mind is completely clear to go out there and attack. I do feel physically strong. I do feel mentally strong, overall. I just think thereâs just some factors that are building up, and Iâm just not executing at the clip I want to.â
Weaver remarked that he believes he may have been tipping pitches towards the end of the regular season, leading to tweaks with his mechanics that may be contributing to his struggles.
Streaky Yankees Bullpen Falters Late Against Toronto
Weaver wasn’t the only New York reliever who struggled in game one of the ALDS. Fernando Cruz, who relieved Weaver in the seventh, and Paul Blackburn ceded eight of the 10 runs allowed in the 10-1 blowout loss. All of the runs allowed by those three pitchers came in the seventh and eighth innings.
Cruz was phenomenal in the Wild Card Series against Boston, posting scoreless innings in two high-leverage situations in games one and two. He was one of New York’s more consistent relievers during the regular season.
Blackburn has served in the thankless role of being the mop-up guy for the Yankees on a number of occasions this season, a role he filled again in game one. Though he allowed four runs, he stuck in the game longer than he should have to save some of the other bullpen arms in the New York back-end.
New York Looks To Steal Win In Game Two Before Heading Home
The Yankees will send their ace, Max Fried, to the bump for game two of the ALDS on Sunday, Oct. 5. Fried posted a tremendous outing in game one of the Wild Card series against the Red Sox, pitching six and a third with no runs allowed and six strikeouts.
Game two has the chance to be a pivotal contest for both teams. If New York can escape Toronto with one win before heading back to the Bronx for games three and four, they’ll have all of the momentum. On the flip side, a 2-0 lead for Toronto puts all of the pressure on the Yankees in game three in a win or go home scenario.
A pivotal game two starts at 4:08 p.m. in Toronto on Sunday, Oct. 5.
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