For the second time in as many starts, Luis Severino put the Yankees in an immediate hole that proved insurmountable.
The struggling pitcher surrendered a three-run home run to Houston Astros rookie Yainer Diaz in the first inning Friday night, setting the tone for another ugly outing in the Yankees’ 7-3 loss in the Bronx.
Severino also allowed a second-inning run when he hit Alex Bregman with the bases loaded, then served up a fifth-inning solo shot to Yordan Alvaraz that ended his night. The right-hander heard boos from the Yankee Stadium crowd as he exited Friday’s game.
“I’m not going to lie, every time I give up a homer or a run in the first inning, it’s like, ‘Jesus Christ, what am I doing?’ And I start looking for different stuff,” Severino said afterward. “Is this mechanics? Is this tipping [pitches]? This is a really good lineup. If you make mistakes, you’re gonna pay for it.”
The 29-year-old Severino, a two-time All-Star and impending free agent, allowed five runs in four innings, dropping his record to 2-6 and inflating his ERA to 7.74.
The rough performance came five days after Severino gave up nine runs — including seven in the first inning — in a loss to the Baltimore Orioles, after which he said he felt like “the worst pitcher in the game.”
A day after the Baltimore blowout, Yankees manager Aaron Boone declined to commit to Severino making his next start. But Severino took the mound Friday, allowing a double to Jose Altuve on the first pitch of the game and walking Kyle Tucker before Diaz’s two-out blast.
Following Friday’s game, Boone didn’t rule out moving Severino to the bullpen, saying, “Everything’s on the table.”
“We’ll kind of talk through it,” Boone said. “The biggest thing is whatever we do, it’s trying to continue to get him to find that consistency.”
It was the sixth time in 13 starts that Severino allowed at least five runs.
“As of right now, I’m a starting pitcher,” Severino said. “I love having a day for me, but at the end of the day, I’m on the team, and whatever they need me to do.”
Houston continues to cause problems for Severino, who fell to 2-4 against the Astros in the regular season and is 0-3 against them in four playoff starts.
Diaz, 24, wasn’t the only Astros rookie to play a starring role in Friday’s win. Starting pitcher Hunter Brown mostly handled the Bronx Bombers’ bats, with the only offense against him coming on solo home runs by Jake Bauers and Isiah Kiner-Falefa.
Brown, 24, struck out four over six innings. He escaped a first-inning jam when the Astros’ Jake Meyers made a sliding catch in deep center field, robbing Billy McKinney of a likely two-run double in a moment Boone described as “a game-changer.”
Yankees slugger Aaron Judge began the game on the bench to rest an injured right big toe that kept him out nearly two months. He pinch-hit in the seventh inning, striking out on three pitches against reliever Hector Neris.
Judge returned to the Yankees lineup last week and served as the team’s designated hitter in six of the seven games he started since. He’s now 5-for-19 with a home run and seven walks since being activated from the injured list.
Giancarlo Stanton hit a home run in the eighth inning, giving him 17 for the season. The solo shot gave Stanton three games in a row with a home run.
Friday’s loss ended a two-game win streak for the Yankees, who avoided a three-game sweep against the Rays with a victory Wednesday before taking Thursday’s series opener over the Astros. The Yankees fell to 57-53 and are 3.5 games back of the third and final AL Wild Card spot.
The Yankees hope to get a boost Saturday afternoon from Nestor Cortes as he returns from a rotator cuff strain for his first start since May 30. The 2022 All-Star is scheduled to pitch against three-time Cy Young Award winner Justin Verlander, who is set to make his first start since the Astros acquired him from the Mets before last Tuesday’s trade deadline.
The 40-year-old Verlander, who pitched for Houston from 2017-22, is 10-7 with a 3.24 ERA in 25 career regular-season starts against the Yankees and played a central role in eliminating them from the 2017, 2019 and 2022 postseasons.
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