The New York Yankees just got swept by the Boston Red Sox over the weekend. Dropped three straight. Lost the division lead. And their offense went quiet for most of the series. But if you ask reliever Fernando Cruz, this is exactly the kind of stretch that builds real contenders.
Cruz was the guy on the mound Sunday when the Red Sox came back from a two-run deficit in the 10th inning. Jarren Duran lined a single to right field off Cruz to drive in the winning run. He recorded one out and gave up two earned runs. It looked rough. But Cruz isn’t treating it like a disaster.
“The best teams go through stretches like this, and champions and great teams in history go through stretches like this, and especially games like this,” Cruz told Gary Phillips of the New York Daily News. “For me, it’s a formation. It’s something that is forming me into a better athlete and a better pitcher, and I’m gonna be better next time.”
The Yankees Are in a Real Rut Right Now
This series loss wasn’t an isolated thing. The Yankees have now lost seven of their last ten games. Their offense has been mostly dormant. Jazz Chisholm Jr. got ejected on Sunday, which didn’t help. And they’re dealing with injuries to key players, including Aaron Judge. That’s a lot of weight on a team that started the season looking like the class of the AL East.
It’s hard to overstate how much this sweep stings. The Red Sox didn’t just win three games. They came from behind late in two of them. They beat the Yankees at Yankee Stadium with the kind of scrappy, never-say-die baseball that usually wears down even good teams. The Red Sox are playing loose and the Yankees are playing tight.
Cruz Has Been Reliable but Sunday Was a Miss
Cruz has been a steady arm out of the bullpen for most of the year. He’s not normally the guy who gives up late leads. But Sunday wasn’t his day. He fell behind hitters, couldn’t put away Duran, and the game got away from him. It happens. Relievers have bad outings. The interesting thing is how he’s handling it.
He’s not sulking. He’s not offering excuses. He’s framing this as part of a bigger process. Some guys say the right things after a loss. Cruz sounds like he actually believes what he’s saying. He’s treating the failure as information. Adjustments will come. The question is whether the team can stabilize around him while he figures it out.
The Yankees have no margin for error right now. They can’t afford another week like this one. But Cruz isn’t panicking. He’s talking like a guy who’s been through worse and came out the other side better. Whether that translates into wins next week is another story, but at least one guy in the clubhouse isn’t hitting the panic button.
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