Yankees Lose Seventh Straight on Walk-Off Homer at Yankee Stadium

NEW YORK — When Yankees' closer Aroldis Chapman trotted in from the bullpen in the nightcap of Friday's doubleheader, music didn't blare and fire wasn't shown on the Jumbotron Yankee Stadium.

While New York was hosting its crosstown rivals in the Bronx, the Yankees played as the road team in Game 2 of the twin bill, making up a game previously postponed due to the Mets' COVID-19 cases.

So when Amed Rosario connected on a hanging slider from Chapman in the seventh to take a 4-3 lead, the Yankees didn't have a chance for last licks. It was a walk-off home run.

"It's not fun. I personally sat there and watched the entire celebration," outfielder Clint Frazier said after the loss. "It happened and I didn't expect it, I don't think a lot of us expected it with the guy that we had on the mound going out there and his success rate. It's not fun but luckily we have one tomorrow, two the next day and hopefully we can get back on track because we definitely need it right now."

Rosario's walk-off home run was the first by a visiting player since before the 20th century began. According to Elias Sports Bureau, Ed McKean for the St. Louis Perfectos at the Cleveland Spiders on May 12, 1899 was the most recent visitor to end a game with a homer.

It was such a bizarre and unique moment that some of the players on the field, including Rosario himself, didn't realize it was a walk-off.

Amed Rosario says he forgot the Mets were the "home" team at Yankee Stadium. He didn't realize he had just won the game until he saw his teammates piling out of the dugout in celebration.
— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) August 29, 2020

Rosario told reporters that until he saw his teammates rush onto to the field to greet him at home plate, he thought it was nothing more than a go-ahead blast and had forgotten the Mets were the home team. Left fielder Dominic Smith added postgame that he thought Chapman didn't realize either. He said he saw the Yankees' closer ask for a new ball to continue the inning rather than begin walking toward his dugout.

According to the Mets' Dom Smith, Aroldis Chapman didn't know Amed Rosario's homer ended the game.

"He was asking for another ball after the pitch. It goes to show just how weird this season has been.”
— Bryan Hoch ⚾️ (@BryanHoch) August 29, 2020

While watching the Mets celebrate on their home turf was rotten, New York's losing streak doesn't make things any better for those in pinstripes.

The Yankees have now lost seven games in a row, something this club hasn't done since June of 2017. With an off day sandwiched in between, the Yankees have been swept in back-to-back doubleheaders.

When you factor in the stretch that the injury-plagued Bombers are on—playing the final 31 games of the season in the next 30 days—it's clear the bid for a playoff spot doesn't get any easier from here on out.

"It's definitely a tough stretch, as tough as I can ever remember," right-hander Adam Ottavino said. "But I feel like these things come, they happen. Luckily right now there's a lot of baseball left and we'll try to peak when it matters."

A trio of late-inning home runs in Game 1 of the doubleheader off a generally untouchable reliever in Chad Green were the different for the Mets' first win of the day. That came after another blown lead in Game 2 of Wednesday's twin bill in Atlanta, another instance where Green surrendered a go-ahead homer.

"This outing was a little bit of a struggle for him," Boone said on Green, walking through the mistakes he's thrown in his last two appearances. "That's going to happen in the course of a season even with the best relievers like Greeny."

HOW ABOUT THIS?

Amed Rosario's walk-off home run at Yankee Stadium, in which he was a *visiting player* (determined by venue, NOT who bats 1st), is the 1st walk-off HR by a visiting player since Ed McKean for St. Louis at the Cleveland Spiders on May 12, 1899

h/t @EliasSports
— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) August 29, 2020

After starting the season with a perfect 10-0 record at home, tying a franchise record, the Yankees have lost each of their last five games in Yankee Stadium.

A sweep at the hands of the Tampa Bay Rays last week knocked the Bombers out of first place in the American League East. Now, with their overall record falling to 16-13, the Yankees are in danger of dropping to third in the division behind the surging Toronto Blue Jays.

"You gotta turn the page quickly here and obviously a tough stretch for us right now," Yankees' manager Aaron Boone said. "We just gotta start finishing off some games now."

READ: Yankees' Clint Frazier Embraces Trade Deadline Rumors: 'I Just Want to Play'

Nonetheless, even after discouraging news on the injury front regarding the status of banged up stars Aaron Judge and Gleyber Torres, Boone and his played believe they can get through this stretch and come out on the other side still in the thick of contention.

"At the end of the day, we have great players and we believe in each other," Ottavino explained. "Everybody will try to get this out of their system. We'll get on a roll, it's like a snowball. Start small and we'll keep going and going and going and hopefully have a better streak going in the other direction."

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For more from Max Goodman, follow him on Twitter @MaxTGoodman. Follow ITP on Twitter @SI_Yankees and Facebook @SIYankees