The Yankees were shut out by Drew Rasmussen on Thursday night, dropping the first game of a crucial four-game set in an eventual 8-2 loss in the Bronx.
For the Bombers, it was a frustrating return to the norm after the offense looked to be awakening against the pitiful A’s earlier this week.
Aaron Judge, who went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts, told reporters after the game that the loss happened at the plate, where Yankee hitters were once again stymied by Rasmussen, who still hasn’t allowed an earned run against the Yanks in his career.
“In the box,” Judge said. “We got a couple pitches to hit there throughout the game, but you have to tip your cap on some of those. He made his pitches when he had to, kind of kept us off balanced the whole time he was out there.
“We gotta come up with a better game plan in the box and execute it.”
The shorthanded Yankees rank in the bottom third of the league in team OPS, are fading fast in the AL East in the early going, and showed no signs of solving Rasmussen, one of several Tampa pitchers who the Bombers have looked feeble against in recent years.
“He’s got quality pitches,” Judge said. “He’s not a one or two pitch guy…for us, it’s just about when we get our pitches in the zone, we can’t miss it, foul it off or hit it into the ground. We gotta do damage and get on base.”
Follow Ryan Chichester on Twitter: @ryanchichester1
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