Red Sox Continue Dominant Trend Against Yankees Pitcher
New York Yankees starting pitcher Ryan Yarbrough might have experienced deja vu during his rough outing against the Boston Red Sox on Saturday.
Boston pounded the left-hander for eight runs in four innings en route to a 10-7 win.
The setback halted a hot streak for the 33-year-old, who allowed six combined runs in his previous five starts.
It’s far from the first time Boston has made Yarbrough’s life difficult, though. Yarbrough has a 7.65 ERA in 21 career appearances against the Red Sox. He has surrendered 170 runs on 100 hits in 77 2/3 innings versus Boston. Romy González was responsible for Boston’s 16th home run off Yarbrough, who faced the Red Sox for the first time as a Yankee.
The current Red Sox lineup can’t take credit for that long-term dominance, however. Only Rafael Devers (7-for-29, three walks, home run) has more than 10 career plate appearances against Yarbrough.
A member of the Toronto Blue Jays and Los Angeles Dodgers last year, Yarbrough threw 4 2/3 scoreless innings over three appearances against Boston.
The majority of his struggles against the Red Sox occurred when he was a member of the Tampa Bay Rays (2018-2022). He made his first three career appearances against the American League East rival, but his Red Sox problem began when he surrendered 10 runs in his final two outings against them in 2019.
Boston then compiled nine runs off Yarbrough in consecutive August 2020 outings. Yarbrough can blame his career-high 5.11 ERA in 2021 in part to Boston plating 25 earned runs (and three unearned) over 20 frames.
The left-hander responded to his latest outing against Boston.
“They just kind of strung a bunch of hits together,” he told reporters after the game, per YES Network. “You feel like you’re not necessarily — obviously they’re still getting hits, but you’re not giving up a lot of hard contact. They’re just finding a lot of holes and putting things in the right place.”
Yarbrough could soon get an opportunity for redemption. If the Yankees maintain their current rotation, he’s scheduled to face the Red Sox again on Friday night.