You know how they say in movies that it can’t get any worse right before it does? If you were to write a script about a spirit-breaking defeat, you’d probably fall short in absurdity to what we just witnessed in this 13-12 Yankees loss at the hands of the Marlins.
Marred by a struggling bullpen with few trustworthy relievers in the first half, New York went heavy on the trade market for bullpen help. The trio of Jake Bird, David Bednar, and Camilo Doval all arrived in Miami today with the intention
of patching up the wound. Instead, they threw salt all over it and probably caused an infection to boot. Handed a 9-4 lead in the seventh, Bird, Bednar, and Doval combined to allow nine runs while only securing six outs. “Aided” by a gruesome error from another July 31st newcomer, utilityman José Caballero, Doval ended up blowing a save after the Yankees had bounced back from potentially their worst half-inning this season to take a 12-10 lead heading into the ninth.
This was your typical atypical game, as not once, not twice, but on three separate occasions, the Yankees looked in complete control of things only to lose in the end. All 12 runs went for naught as Miami completely stormed back into the game time and time again. It was the first time in over 50 years that they lost a nine-inning game despite that many Bombers touching home plate.
In the beginning, there was obviously. New York jumped all over former prospect Janson Junk and surged to a 6-0 lead on the strength of a three-run shot from Giancarlo Stanton in the fourth (tying Hall of Famer Andre Dawson with 438 in his career, ranking 46th in baseball history), followed by a Cody Bellinger two-run single to cap off a three-run fifth inning. That Bellinger hit felt like a proper reward as he just missed a three-run homer right before Stanton went deep an inning earlier.
Quickly after that, New York blew its first chance at a comfortable victory when Carlos Rodón, due to his struggles to stay in the strike zone, coughed up four runs in the fifth after not allowing a hit through four frames. Other than an inexplicableJ avier Sanoja two-run homer, the Marlins drove in those four runs on the backs of bloopers and free passes. Rodón had five walks total in his 4.2 innings of work.
Still, for as frustrating as Rodón’s performance was, the Yankees quickly took control of this game again. Trent Grisham swatted New York’s second three-run shot of the evening to make it a 9-4 lead.
The problem is that this home run by Grisham ended up only setting the stage for the seventh inning’s terrible collapse.
Bird came in to make his debut with the Yankees up by five, and he got taken to the woodshed, loading the bases on two hits and a walk before facing Miami’s premier hitter, Kyle Stowers. The sole Miami All-Star got a pitch he could handle and clubbed a grand slam to make this a 9-8 game.
Now with the mood around the stadium entirely different, Bednar was asked to come in and hold the one-run lead, and he couldn’t. Sanoja, who has 20 homers in over 400 games as a minor-leaguer, hit his second long ball of the evening, tying things up at 9-9. Miami eventually took the lead at 10-9 on Agustín Ramírez’s single, but there was still plenty of game left to be played.
Putting behind a month in which he hit .172, Anthony Volpe got the Yankees back in this one by going deep in the top of the eighth, and it was no cheapie. The resurgent Volpe’s solo homer—his 17th of 2025—went off the bat at 110.1 MPH, traveling 421 feet.
If the debuting pitchers disappointed everyone beyond belief, a debuting hitter, or in this particular case, a runner, decided to pick up the slack. With it being anyone’s game tied at 10 in the ninth, Ben Rice got a two-out pinch-hit single. Doing exactly what he was brought on to do, Caballero pinch-ran for Rice, stole second, and came around to score on a Ryan McMahon single, also his first big moment since coming to the Yankees.
Only Caballero might as well have been Truman in one of his many failed attempts to leave the island by trying to shift the plot in favor of the recently acquired Yankees.
Doval came in for the save situation over Devin Williams, who the Yankees avoided as he had been used in two of the last three days. The former Giants closer couldn’t shut the door. And because life is funny that way, the tying run for Miami came around to score on a blatant and inexcusable error by Caballero, who let a rolling single with runners at first and second pass right by him in left field.
Doval still had the chance to take the game to extras, pitching with a man at third, one out, and five infielders. Agustin Ramírez hit a squibber that traveled exactly one foot, giving the speedy Xavier Edwards enough time to score from third before the defense could make any play.
There’s not much else to say. This was simply a wretched, awful loss that the Yankees will have to flush as soon as possible. They can’t get this game back. They just have to move on.
Looking to put this loss behind them, the Yankees get right back at it on Saturday with rookie Cam Schlittler facing the nasty Eury Pérez. First pitch from Miami comes at 4:10pm ET.
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