Soto HR, 9th-inning rally not enough for Yanks in Texas

ARLINGTON -- The Yankees’ disappointing stretch continued in Texas this week, as they dropped a third straight series to a team on the outside of the playoff picture.

The Yankees fell 10-6 to the Rangers on Wednesday night in the series finale at Globe Life Field, marking their sixth loss in their last eight games. The Yankees have lost their last three series to the Nationals, Cardinals, and Rangers.

Yankees starter Marcus Stroman struggled, allowing five runs on nine hits over 3 2/3 innings. Stroman had been riding high going into the game, posting a 3-0 record with a 2.35 ERA over his previous four starts, but didn’t make it out of the fourth inning. The bullpen didn’t fare much better, as the Rangers scored three runs in the sixth -- all of which were charged to Tim Mayza -- and two more in the seventh off Ron Marinaccio.

Offensively, Juan Soto produced the Yankees’ first two runs with a two-run home run off Rangers starter Nathan Eovaldi in the fifth inning -- Soto's first long ball since Aug. 25. Eovaldi worked out of trouble the rest of his night, finishing with six strikeouts over seven innings.

The Yankees showed life late in the game. Trent Grisham belted a grand slam off the right-field foul pole in the ninth, before Duke Ellis notched his first hit in the Majors with a single to left. But the deficit proved simply too much to overcome as the Rangers turned to closer Kirby Yates for the final out. Giancarlo Stanton smoked a 103.9 mph liner to left field, but Wyatt Langford made the catch at the wall to quash the rally and end the game.

The good news for the Yankees is that they remain just a half-game behind the Orioles in the AL East race, after Baltimore fell to the White Sox on Wednesday.